[Well-informed on health matters--how well? The German 'Clearinghouse for Patient Information'--objective, background and methods].

Objective: Health information for lay people in print or electronic form are internationally recognised as useful tools and as necessary in the decision-making process of individuals. The effectiveness of offered patient information depends on quality and accessibility. Because much of the available health information is significantly deficient, the Agency for Quality in Medicine developed a programme for assessing the quality of specialised health and medical information for all non-medically trained persons. The German 'Clearinghouse for Patient Information' project is an adjunct to the already established German 'Clearinghouse for Clinical Guidelines'. Method: The basis for quality improvement for specialised medical information consists 1. in the determination of demands on quality for patient information published in the German language, 2. development of a standardised instrument for assessing the quality of specialised medical information by non-medically trained persons, 3. establishment of an Internet portal for evaluated and rated material, and 4. the establishment and organisation of relevant partnerships with information providers and users of health and medical information. The principle building block to rate medical information for lay people are the DISCERN criteria for good patient information. The results of the quality rating of specialised medical information are made available to the public with emphasis on promoting transparency of the assessment and rating processes used. Results: The Internet-based patient information service of the Agency for Quality in Medicine (www.patienten-information.de 19.06.02) has currently a selection of approximately 800 information items covering fifty disease topics with fully or partially evaluated and rated information. Partnerships to appropriate information providers and users are already established and have been tested in special single projects. Conclusion: To advance the process of quality improvement for medical information for non-medical and lay persons, it is essential to develop and to intensify the cooperation with stake holders and partners at different levels. Only through close cooperation with others it is possible to create a basis to continuously develop and improve the information quality assessment instrument further. In addition, effective strategies need to be developed to disseminate these endeavours to patients and consumers of health information in a user-friendly and transparent way.