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Examining the Interaction Between Medical Information Seeking Online and Understanding: Exploratory Study
Rei Kobayashi1, Masato Ishizaki1
1Interfaculty Initiative in Information Studies, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan.
JMIR Cancer
|October 6, 2019
Summary
Patients seeking health information online can find reliable websites, but may struggle with complex medical terms and synthesizing information. Improving health literacy and navigation skills is key for better online health information understanding.
Area of Science:
- Health Informatics
- Medical Communication
- Digital Health Literacy
Background:
- Patient online information seeking can improve treatment decisions and doctor relationships.
- Previous research focused on website accuracy, neglecting other quality aspects and seeking processes.
- Few studies explore the interplay between website quality, health literacy, and online information seeking behaviors.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore the quality of websites for medical information seeking from the perspective of understanding information.
- To investigate the relationship between health literacy, information navigation skills, and online medical information seeking processes.
- To analyze patient perceptions and challenges in understanding online medical information.
Main Methods:
- A study involving 15 Japanese university students with internet proficiency.
- Questionnaire surveys on health literacy and internet navigation skills.
- Qualitative interviews and analysis of participants' online search behavior and explanations, evaluated by healthcare professionals.
Main Results:
- Participants accessed reliable websites but faced challenges with medical terminology and synthesizing information from multiple sources.
- Health literacy and information navigation skills were moderately correlated (r=0.54).
- Understanding and appraising information stages of health literacy correlated with navigation skills.
Conclusions:
- Online medical information seeking involves complex interactions between searching and understanding.
- Physician evaluations and participant perceptions highlight challenges in interpreting online health data.
- Interventions should address both navigation skills and the ability to comprehend complex medical information.
Keywords:
consumer health informaticshealth communicationhealth literacyinformation-seeking behaviorinternet accessMore Related Videos
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