“You Can Find Anything Online”: Biocommunicability of Cyber-Health Information and its Impact on How the NET Generation Accesses Health Care (original) (raw)

With millions of people accessing health information online, there is mounting concern that unreliable information is pushing patient demand for unnecessary diagnostic testing or inappropriate treatment. To explore the role of the Internet in emergent healthseeking models, we turn to the NET Generation. University students (age 18-25) are engaged in a life transition, formulating life patterns which include making health care decisions. Using qualitative and quantitative methods, this article offers a preliminary understanding of the extent to which online health information is penetrating illness conceptions and health-seeking behaviors of male and female students. It also suggests the potential need for intervention to reduce burdens on our health care system.

Consumer use of the internet for health information:

An increasing number of patients use the internet to obtain information about health. Although some information is available about how health professionals use the internet, little is known about how patients utilize this information. Some patients may actively seek information to assume more responsibility for their health. However, others may feel obliged to do so because of failing confidence in health care provision. Health professionals have the potential to assist patients to make sense of health information from the internet; however, they may not necessarily welcome this role. This study aims to evaluate patients’ use of such information in a primary care setting. The sample consisted of adult patients ( n = 851) from two general practice populations at different levels of the socio-economic spectrum in South Wales (UK). Patients were surveyed by questionnaire about the health information they use, including the internet. The majority of patients preferred to use their general practitioner as the main source of health information. The internet was jointly the second preferred source for information about an illness (6%). Just over half (51%) of patients in this study had access to the internet, of which about half use it to access health information. Just under a quarter (24%, n = 55) of health internet users had discussed information accessed from the internet during a subsequent consultation with a health professional. Of these, three-quarters felt more prepared and able to participate in decision-making about treatments. This study provides a greater understanding of how patients are making use of health-related information from the internet. These findings can be used to help prepare health care professionals for dealing appropriately with internet-informed patients.

Inquiring Minds Acquiring Wellness: Uses of Online and Offline Sources for Health Information

2011

Variation in ability to access and use health information is a key pathway through which social status may impact health. Digital media offer new opportunities for health information seeking, potentially lowering barriers to such content. Using a data set with nuanced information about what sources a diverse group of college students consults for different types of health material, coupled with detailed measures of Internet experiences, this article explores factors related to where young adults turn for health content.

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E-Health

Advances in healthcare information systems and administration book series, 2017