The Internet Use for Health Information Seeking among Ghanaian University Students: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

The aim of the study was to investigate university students' use of the Internet for health purpose in the Ghanaian context. The study employed a quantitative cross-sectional design. A total of 650 out of 740 students selected from 3 different universities participated, giving a response rate of 87.7% (650/740). Data were obtained using questionnaires and frequency and percentages were used to analyze data. The results show that university students are active users of the Internet as 78.3% (509/650) used Internet daily and 67.7% (440/650) use Internet for health purposes, for reasons including availability and ease of accessing information, privacy, confidentiality, and affordability. Use of Internet was constrained by unreliable and slow connection, high cost of Internet, and unreliable power supply. Also, 72.4% (315/435) used the online health information obtained as a basis for lifestyle change and only 39.5% (170/430) consulted health professionals after obtaining online information. The study concludes that students use Internet to seek online health support. The use of Internet to communicate with young people in relation to their health must therefore be explored. There is the need to be aware of online safety issues for young adults, including the need to provide information on privacy options.

The Correlation of Online Health Information Seeking Experience with the Health Related Quality of Life: A Cross-sectional Study among Iranian Female Students

“…The Internet is an attractive and common source of health information today [16,28,31]. The use of the internet to access health information has increased in recent years due to the reasons such as accessibility, high volume of information disseminated trough that, confidentiality, low cost, multi-media capabilities and the ability to interact and to gain support [24,27,32]. Reports indicate that adolescents are increasingly spending their time for using internet.…”

“…A study among the Nigerian students has found that only 50% of participants consulted with a physician about their health after searching online health information [38]. A study at 3 Ghanaian universities also reported that 72.4 percent of respondents used retrieved online information as a basis for lifestyles modifications and more than 73 percent of students stated that access to online health information improved or partially improved their health status, while 1.2 percent said that using Internet has no effect on their overall health [32].…”

“…Supply side strategies: expanding internet access; providing high-quality, appropriate and understandable information; monitoring online health contents; engaging health professionals in producing evidence-based information; ensuring safety, paying attention to legal issues and focusing on adolescent health priorities are among the strategies of supply side [27,28,32,38].…”

The use of Internet for gathering health information among primary healthcare patients

“…Istraživanja grupe autora iz Gane ukazuju na postojanje značajne povezanosti između onlajn zdravstvene aktivnosti sa jedne i zdravstenog statusa sa druge strane. Osobe koje imaju dijagnostifikovanu hroničnu bolest, osobe sa bolesnim članom porodice i lica sa narušenom zdravstvenom percepcijom češći su konzumenti zdravstvenih informacija na internetu (15). Istraživanje provedeno u Sjedinjenim Američkim Državama utvrdilo je statistički značajno češću onlajn zdravstvenu aktivnost kod osoba koje imaju hroničnu bolest u odnosu na oboljele od akutne bolesti koji su skloniji odabiru izravnije i tačnije informacije, poput pregleda u zdravstvenim ustanovama (16).…”

“…Značajniju spremnost za razgovorom sa ljekarom o onlajn zdravstvenim informacijama detektovala su samo istraživanja studentske populacije (Saudijska Arabija 57.3%, Gana 39.5%) (23,24). Kvalitetna komunikacija o onlajn zdravstvenim informacijama zahtijeva razumijevanje potrebe pacijenta za zdravstvenom edukacijom na internetu .…”