Going online for health advice: Changes in usage and trust practices over the last five years

Abstract

In recent years the number of health related websites has increased dramatically and so have concerns regarding the quality of online information. The sheer volume of sites and the variety of information available have left health consumers potentially with greater choice but it is not clear whether these online changes are reflected in user behaviour. This study addresses whether users are becoming more proficient in searching for credible, high quality information and whether they are more demanding of the type of information being sought and less ready to trust online health advice. This paper describes changes in the use of the Internet for health advice over a five-year period. It compares findings from two large-scale online questionnaire studies undertaken in 2000 and 2005. Key changes and similarities in usage and trust practices are noted. The rise in unregulated sites is discussed in terms of patients ''acting as scientists'' using websites to test out theories regarding their health. The increasing importance of design issues is also highlighted and implications for website designers and content providers are presented.

The Role of Health Anxiety in Online Health Information Search

“…The quality and credibility of online health information has been criticized in the past. 2,27,28 A majority of online health information has shown to be of low quality or barely credible. 29 Source credibility has been shown to moderate the effect of health information.…”

“…[1][2][3] Despite increasing numbers of online health information seekers, 4,5 little is known about their psychological characteristics. Most studies focused on sociodemographic determinants of online health information seeking, 2,6-10 the expectations, or the health status of users.…”

How do people with asthma use Internet sites containing patient experiences?

“…Yet early reviews of asthma websites revealed problems with accessibility, as well as poor quality, and content that failed to meet the needs of asthma patients [13]. Subsequently, both the source and the nature of e-health content have changed rapidly, with much more patientfocussed content [14]. Indeed, patients themselves now provide a crucial source of online health material and the number of people accessing patient-authored content, in particular those with chronic conditions, has greatly increased [15].…”

TreatmentExplorer: an Interactive Decision Aid for Medical Risk Communication and Treatment Exploration

“…Increases in online information have started to increase patient knowledge and responsibility for their health (Sillence et al, 2007). Evidence-based medicine (Frankovich, Longhurst and Sutherland, 2011) promotes the ideal that patients like Donna should be given personalized data about their treatment options so that they can come to a logical decision based on treatments that have the greatest efficacy -usually with their physicians.…”