Government health experts learning how best to contribute to Wikipedia

Some "experienced Wikipedia authors" will spend a day at the National Institutes of Health this week teaching government experts how best to contribute health info to the popular open-source encyclopedia.

It's an intriguing first-time collaboration between those who run Wikipedia and a government agency. If successful, the effort should boost both the quantity and quality of medical information available on Wikipedia.

While Wikipedia contains a lot of useful information, "Anyone with Internet access can make changes to Wikipedia articles," as the site notes.

Is that really how you want to get your information about, say, cancer?

Well, perhaps, especially if you use Wikipedia as a starting-off point and not a one-stop information shop. That is, a) it's only one source among many, b) you check article citations to see where some of the info came from, and c) maintain a degree of skepticism.

If NIH experts regularly contribute health information, Wikipedia will end up with better, more trustworthy content. This also helps helps the NIH get medical knowledge into the hands of a broader audience. It's good to see government get more involved in sharing information on existing Web 2.0 platforms.

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