The Impact of Online Health Information Seeking Behavior on Self-Care Activities among Adult Diabetic Type-2 Patients
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Abstract
Background: In present surge for patients-centered case, patients frequently and increasingly use the Internet for access health related information (HRI) and the information obtained has an impact on their healthcare outcomes. Inspite of growing interest in the quality of online health information sources, existing research reveals a lacuna in the realm of diabetes patient’s online HRI seeking behavior and its impact on their self care.
Objective: To explore online HRI seeking behavior among Saudi adult diabetes type 2 patients and to evaluate the impact of online HRI seeking behavior on self-care activities for their diabetes management.
Methods: We surveyed 344 patients with type 2 diabetes attending the primary care clinics at King Khaled Hospital. Main outcome measures included the ability to access the Internet, Internet use to search for health related information, and responses to such Internet searches with their self care related activities. Further analysis of whether there were differences based on age, gender, socio-demographic and diabetes-related self care activities by online HRI seeker were performed.
Results: Among 344 patients, 74% were males and overall mean age was 53.47±13.8 years (range between 16-84 years). Among all participants, only (39%) were internet users and out of them 71.6% (n=96) used internet for HRI. Most of the participants reported that their primary source of HRI is their physician (63%), followed by television (45%), Family (33%), newspapers (29%) and internet (27.9%). The primary topics they were looking for were therapeutic diet for diabetes (57%) ,symptoms of diabetes (54%) ,diabetes treatment (52%) and causes of diabetes (50%). Longer diabetes duration, genetic history of disease, unemployment and not seeking diabetes education were the most common barriersfor online HRI seeking behavior. Younger age, gender, marital status, higher education and income, and duration of internet usages were positively associated factors with online HRI behavior. Most (92.7%)of the online HRI seeker reported remarkable positive change in their behaviors after seeking online health information. Overall odds ratio (OR=1.56, 95% CI 0.629-3.280) of all of the completed self care questionnaire responses demonstrated that those seeking HRI were 49.4 % more likely to be conscious about their self health care compared to none online HRI seekers.
Conclusions: Among diabetes patients primary source of HRI was a physician, followed by the TV. Around one fourth proportion of sampled diabetes patients were using internet for HRI. The major factors associated positively with online HRI seeking behavior were age, gender, marital status, level of education and diabetes education. Overall present study findings demonstrated that those seeking online HRI were more conscious about their diabetes self health care compared to none HRI seekers. Hence, physicians, public health professionals, and e-Health developers should cooperate to educate and encourage diabetes patients to search for online health information in order to improve their health outcome
Objective: To explore online HRI seeking behavior among Saudi adult diabetes type 2 patients and to evaluate the impact of online HRI seeking behavior on self-care activities for their diabetes management.
Methods: We surveyed 344 patients with type 2 diabetes attending the primary care clinics at King Khaled Hospital. Main outcome measures included the ability to access the Internet, Internet use to search for health related information, and responses to such Internet searches with their self care related activities. Further analysis of whether there were differences based on age, gender, socio-demographic and diabetes-related self care activities by online HRI seeker were performed.
Results: Among 344 patients, 74% were males and overall mean age was 53.47±13.8 years (range between 16-84 years). Among all participants, only (39%) were internet users and out of them 71.6% (n=96) used internet for HRI. Most of the participants reported that their primary source of HRI is their physician (63%), followed by television (45%), Family (33%), newspapers (29%) and internet (27.9%). The primary topics they were looking for were therapeutic diet for diabetes (57%) ,symptoms of diabetes (54%) ,diabetes treatment (52%) and causes of diabetes (50%). Longer diabetes duration, genetic history of disease, unemployment and not seeking diabetes education were the most common barriersfor online HRI seeking behavior. Younger age, gender, marital status, higher education and income, and duration of internet usages were positively associated factors with online HRI behavior. Most (92.7%)of the online HRI seeker reported remarkable positive change in their behaviors after seeking online health information. Overall odds ratio (OR=1.56, 95% CI 0.629-3.280) of all of the completed self care questionnaire responses demonstrated that those seeking HRI were 49.4 % more likely to be conscious about their self health care compared to none online HRI seekers.
Conclusions: Among diabetes patients primary source of HRI was a physician, followed by the TV. Around one fourth proportion of sampled diabetes patients were using internet for HRI. The major factors associated positively with online HRI seeking behavior were age, gender, marital status, level of education and diabetes education. Overall present study findings demonstrated that those seeking online HRI were more conscious about their diabetes self health care compared to none HRI seekers. Hence, physicians, public health professionals, and e-Health developers should cooperate to educate and encourage diabetes patients to search for online health information in order to improve their health outcome
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