Healthcare Studies

Data and statistics can be difficult to search for.  It's helpful to think about the following when you're searching for this kind of information:

• It takes time to collect, analyze, and publish data.  Sometimes the most recent available data is a few years old.
• National and state data are more prevalent than city/town data.  
• Sometimes you'll find published data sets, which contain raw, unanalyzed data.  See the Tips for Searching Google box on this page for help finding analyzed, ready-to-use statistics.
• Data can be taken out of context, cherry-picked, or manipulated to support a particular point of view.  If you're not sure you can trust a source, try to verify the information in a second source.

You'll find some "best bets" for finding demographic and health statistics below.  You'll probably save yourself some time by searching these first.  But if you can't still find the information you're looking for, see what you can find by searching Google.

These tips will help you do a more effective Google search:

• Look for sites that end in .gov.  City and town websites have lots of local demographic and health information.
• If you find a .org site, look into the organization.  Would they have any reason to present biased information?
• Look for reports, overviews, and snapshots when you're looking for quick facts.  You'll need a lot of time (and probably some advanced tools and knowledge) to find the information you want in a data set.
• If you find a source that cites data from somewhere else, try to find the original source.
• Pay attention to when data was collected.  A report published this year could cite data that's much older.