The role of computer-based resources in health promotion and disease prevention: implications for college health.

The development of the Internet-based World Wide Web communication platform has opened a new avenue for extending the program effectiveness of college health centers. California College Health 2000, a San Diego State University-based HIV prevention project, is collaborating with the university's student health center to develop a computer-based resource to provide hypertext links to specific health information helpful to health promotion planners and consumers. The project's virtual resource centers are organized around health topics and seek to encourage the dissemination of health information to the broadest possible constituency of college health professionals and are designed to provide for continuous feedback and to evolve over time. Implications for the future of college health, based on the creation and pilot use of the resource centers, are discussed, and recommendations are made regarding collaboration, leadership, and continuing innovations in the area of networked health information.