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Utilization of a paediatric link collection by health professionals and laypersons
C U Lehmann1, D J Wang, G R Kim
1Department of Paediatrics, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland 21287-3200, USA.
Insights
Healthcare providers and laypersons actively use the internet for medical information. A study of the Pediatric Points of Interest (POI) website found users efficiently find relevant health resources online.
Area of Science:
- Health Informatics
- Medical Internet Usage
- Digital Health Resources
Background:
- The internet is a growing source of health information, yet user behavior among healthcare providers and the public remains understudied.
- Understanding how individuals utilize online medical resources is crucial for optimizing digital health platforms.
Purpose of the Study:
- To characterize users of a large pediatric medical link collection, the Pediatric Points of Interest (POI).
- To describe user objectives and track their engagement with online health information.
- To analyze the utilization patterns of healthcare professionals versus laypersons.
Main Methods:
- A combination of questionnaires, unique user identifiers, and link-tracking systems were employed.
- Data collection occurred over a five-week period, analyzing 5,216 visitors and 36,187 link requests.
- User demographics, internet experience, and resource navigation pathways were recorded.
Main Results:
- Most POI users were North American, had limited internet experience, and were first-time visitors.
- Medical professionals frequently revisited the POI for education and research, accessing 'Medical Institutions' and 'Professional Education' resources.
- Laypersons primarily sought 'disease specific information' and 'patient education', frequently visiting the 'Patient Education' category.
Conclusions:
- Healthcare providers and the general public actively use internet sites for medical information seeking.
- Users can efficiently locate relevant online health resources with minimal searching effort.
- The study highlights distinct information-seeking behaviors between medical professionals and laypersons online.
Abstract:
The Internet is an evolving resource for health-care information. However little information exists on providers' and other web patrons' usage of the 'medical' Internet. This study aims to characterize the users of a large paediatric link collection, describe their objectives and track their use of the information provided by the site. We utilized a paediatric link collection called the Pediatric Points of Interest (POI) and a combination of a questionnaire, unique user identifier and link-tracking system to collect data about POI patrons' demographics and Internet resource utilization. During a five week period, 5216 individuals visited the POI and requested 36,187 links. The majority of users had less than one year of Internet experience and were first-time visitors to the POI. More than 83% of users were from North America. Medical professionals were more likely to return to the POI during the study period and reported visiting the POI mainly for 'medical education', 'research', 'resource identification', and 'disease specific information'; they proceeded primarily to the resource categories 'Medical Institutions and Agencies' (32%) and 'Professional Education and Resources' (28%). Laypersons expressed the greatest interest in 'disease specific information' and 'patient education' and most frequently visited the category. 'Patient Education' (42%). On average, users were able to identify resources related to their stated goals within one level of searching. Health care providers and other web patrons are actively utilizing Internet sites to seek medical information and are able to identify resources with a minimum of searching.