Use of the Internet and e-mail for health care information - Results from a national survey
Use of the Internet and e-mail for health care information - Results from a national survey
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DOI：
10.1001/jama.289.18.2400
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发表时间：
2003-05-14
影响因子：
120.7
通讯作者：
Bundorf, MK
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Baker, L;Wagner, TH;Bundorf, MK
上下文互联网吸引了大量关注，以改善健康和医疗保健提供的手段，但尚不清楚互联网在医疗保健中的普遍使用或对医疗保健利用的影响如何。可用的使用和影响估计差异很大。没有准确的使用和效果估计，很难集中政策讨论。或设计适当的政策活动。衡量美国人口代表性样本中互联网使用的互联网使用程度，检查电子邮件用于医疗保健的普遍性，并检查互联网和电子邮件使用对用户的影响，对医疗保健问题的知识及其对医疗保健系统的使用以及2001年12月进行的研究量的研究量和参与者在2001年12月进行了划分。通过知识网络维护。从21岁以上的4764个人分析了自我报告的互联网用户的反应。梅恩成果措施在过去一年的互联网和电子邮件中自我报告的费率措施以获取与健康有关的信息，与医疗保健专业人员联系并获得处方；互联网和电子邮件使用对医疗保健使用的影响。在2001年，大约40％的具有Internet访问的受访者在2001年提供有关健康或医疗保健的信息。有6％的人报告使用电子邮件与医师或其他医疗保健专业人员联系。使用Internet进行健康的人中，大约有三分之一的人报告说，使用互联网会影响有关健康或其医疗保健的决定，但报道对可衡量的医疗保健利用的影响很少。 94％的人说，互联网使用对他们的医师访问的数量没有影响，而93％的人表示对电话联系的数量没有影响。报告使用互联网以获取处方或以下的5％或更少。购买药品产品。结论虽然许多人使用互联网以获取健康信息，但使用并不像有时报道的那样常见。对实际医疗保健利用的影响也不如某些人声称的影响。讨论互联网在医疗保健中的作用以及可能影响这种角色的政策的制定，不应假定将互联网用于健康信息是普遍的，或者互联网对医疗保健的利用有强烈影响。
Context The Internet has attracted considerable attention as a means to improve health and health care delivery, but it is not clear how prevalent Internet use for health care really is or what impact it has on health care utilization. Available estimates of use and impact vary widely. Without accurate estimates of use and effects, it is difficult to focus policy discussions. or design appropriate policy activities.Objectives To measure the extent of Internet use for health care among a representative sample of the US population, to examine the prevalence of e-mail use for health care, and to examine the effects that Internet and e-mail use has on users, knowledge about health care matters and their use of the health care system.Design, Setting, and Participants Survey conducted in December 2001. and January 2002 among a sample drawn from a research panel of more than 60000 US households developed and maintained by Knowledge Networks. Responses were analyzed from 4764 individuals aged 21 years or older who were self-reported Internet users.Main Outcome Measures Self-reported rates in the past year of Internet and e-mail use to obtain information related to health, contact health care professionals, and obtain prescriptions; perceived effects of Internet and e-mail use on health care use.Results Approximately 40% of respondents with Internet access reported using the Internet to look for advice or information about health or health care in 2001. Six percent reported using e-mail to contact a physician or other health care professional. About one third of those using the Internet for health reported that using the Internet affected a decision about health or their health care, but very few reported impacts on measurable health care utilization; 94% said that Internet use had no effect on the number of physician visits they had and 93% said it had no effect on the number of telephone contacts. Five percent or less reported use of the Internet to obtain prescriptions or. purchase pharmaceutical products.Conclusions Although many people use the Internet for health information, use is not as common as is sometimes reported. Effects on actual health care utilization are also less substantial than some have claimed. Discussions of the role of the Internet in health care and the development of policies that might influence this role should not presume that use of the Internet for health information is universal or that the Internet strongly influences health care utilization.