Creating a Web site for on-line social support Melanocyte.

Abstract

This article focuses on the creation of an on-line social support web site, Melanocyte, for people who have been diagnosed with malignant melanoma, a deadly form of skin cancer. The web site was created, designed, and programmed by undergraduate baccalaureate nursing students at William Paterson University. The article includes discussion of rationales for a melanoma web site, support groups and the efficacy of on-line support, and the technical creation of the web site. The article also emphasizes the use of undergraduate nursing informatics and research to prepare future nurses, and the use of the Internet as an important nursing research tool.