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Differences in demographic data regarding physicians and patients in the US or abroad using a medically oriented
1Institute for Medical Biometry, Informatics, and Epidemiology, University of Bonn, 53105 Bonn, Germany. quade@uni-bonn.de
Studies in Health Technology and Informatics
|February 24, 2001
Summary
Physicians worldwide accessed National Cancer Institute
Area of Science:
- Oncology
- Medical Informatics
- Public Health
Background:
- The National Cancer Institute (NCI) provides evidence-based cancer therapy guidelines.
- A comprehensive cancer information service was launched in 1994 via the World Wide Web (WWW).
- The service, CancerNet, aimed to disseminate NCI guidelines and general cancer information.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze the usage patterns of the CancerNet WWW service from 1994 to 1999.
- To understand user demographics, interests, and opinions regarding the service.
- To identify differences in service utilization among users in the US, Europe, and developing countries.
Main Methods:
- Utilized user surveys conducted annually from 1996 to 1999.
- Collected demographic data, user interests, and feedback on the information service.
- Analyzed usage statistics and survey responses to identify trends and disparities.
Main Results:
- Over one million users accessed CancerNet documents via WWW since its inception.
- User surveys provided insights into user characteristics and preferences.
- Significant and unexpected differences were observed in service usage between geographic regions.
Conclusions:
- The CancerNet WWW service successfully disseminated NCI cancer therapy guidelines globally.
- User data highlights the importance of understanding regional differences in accessing health information.
- Continued analysis of user data is crucial for optimizing cancer information services.