Assessment of internet use and effects among healthcare professionals: a cross sectional survey

Purpose

Several studies have explored the scientific platforms on patient use of the internet for health information. In contrast physicians'' perspective on evolving internet environment is lacking. The purpose of this study is to assess and correlate the extent of internet use among healthcare professionals and examine its effects on clinical practice.

Methods

Cross sectional survey conducted in the USA using questionnaires distributed randomly to healthcare professionals attending distinct continuing medical education programmes between 2003 and 2004. Multiple choice and yes/no questions related to the trends of internet use and its effects on clinical practice were extracted and responses analysed. The main outcome measures are self reported rates of internet use, perceived effects, and the role of medical web sites in clinical practice.

Results

The overall response rate was 60%. A total of 277 survey respondents (97%) had internet access. Some 7% in private practice and 1% of group practice physicians did not have internet access. Most (71%) used the internet regularly for medical or professional updating and 62% (n = 178) felt the need for sharing web sites designed for healthcare professionals with patients. Some 27% of the physicians currently own established personal practice web sites. Sixty three per cent have recommended a web site to a patient for more information, matching the positive trust (>70%) on the general quality of selected medical web sites.

Conclusion

This cross sectional survey shows that internet use and web based medical information is widely popular among physicians and patients. About 23%–31% of the healthcare professionals report >80% interaction with web informed patients in their daily practice.     

浙江省23家二级医院信息化建设现状的调查与分析

目的了解浙江省二级医院信息化建设现状。方法以省内23家二级综合医院为样本,从信息部门设置及业务范围、信息技术使用、经费投入、信息系统建设、信息化发展需求等方面对其进行分析。结果2008年底以前,22家医院已经全院使用门急诊挂号系统、住院药房管理系统、住院护士工作站;65．2％的医院提供互联网服务;信息系统节点使用率大部分超过60％,绝大部分医院都设置有不同类型网络访问安全措施。结论浙江省医院信息化建设已取得重要进展,但仍需要进一步提升质量。     

合肥市社区居民对互联网健康信息的使用状况调查

目的：了解社区居民对互联网健康信息的使用现状及互联网健康信息的使用与健康行为之间的联系。方法：采用分层整群抽样的方法,在安徽省合肥市7个区县中抽取10个社区,每个社区选择40户社区居民,采用调查问卷对社区居民获取互联网健康信息的途径、主要关注的健康信息类型、对互联网健康信息的信任程度、互联网健康信息对健康行为的影响进行调查。结果：83．9％的被调查者会经常使用网络来查看健康与疾病相关信息;网页和搜索引擎为社区居民获取互联网健康信息的主要方式;随年龄增长,会有更多的人通过网络获取健康信息;食品安全、养生保健、疾病信息是社区居民感兴趣的健康信息;49．6％的人对互联网上健康信息的真实性持中立态度,35．2％的人比较相信,13．6％的人不太相信;53．0％的人认为健康信息会对其健康行为产生影响。结论：互联网已成为社区居民获取健康信息的一种重要途径,多数人对互联网上的健康信息持较为信任的态度,互联网上的健康信息会对部分社区居民的健康行为产生一定影响。     

互联网背景下中医药学科教学与信息技术深度融合的研究

[目的]探索互联网背景下中医药学科教育教学与中医信息化深度融合的方法,为线上和线下教育教学有机结合提供思路,提高教学质量.[方法]从中医药信息化现状和互联网教学平台建设现状入手,结合中医药信息化对互联网+教育教学的影响,探索中医药信息化与互联网+教育教学结合的最佳途径.[结果]分析发现,当前承载信息化教育教学的网络平台...     

充分利用网络资源提高课堂教学效果

面对Internet丰富的信息资源，结合医学院校教学特点，通过教学实践与探索，从网络教学资源的组织与使用、教师素质、对学生利用网络资源的指导等三方面，对网络资源如何应用于课堂教学，充分体现医学教育的适时性及与医学发展相适应提出了几点认识。     

Trends to access internet among medical students of a government medical college in West Bengal

The use of computer and information technology is on an escalation. The internet, one of the key developments in this field, provides instant access to latest medical information. The present study was conducted (i) to estimate the extent and purpose of internet usage among undergraduate (UG) and postgraduate (PG) medical students, (ii) to identify factors that encourage the students to use internet for medical information, (iii) to assess the need for incorporating computer education in medical curriculum. A prospective, cross-sectional, questionnaire-based study was conducted on 150 students of Burdwan Medical College and Hospital between June 2009 and December 2009. Majority of the students accessed internet from their home PC (42% UGs and 52% PGs).Common search engines browsed commonly by both UGs and PGs include Google and yahoo. Regarding principles of telemedicine and evidence-based medicine, majority of the PGs are well versed while UGs are not (p-value 0.0001). Almost all students agreed to incorporate computer education in medical curriculum. Primary source of medical information was textbook for UGs (62%) and internet for the PGs (48%). Majority of UGs (48%) used internet as a ready source of information thus saving time while PGs (68%) primarily relied on internet for recent advances in their disciplines. The primary purposes of internet use are educational for both UGs and PGs. The data obtained indicates that majority of the medical students participating in the present study embrace and use internet to access medical information. It also justifies the need to incorporate internet and associated information technology into existing medical curriculum.     

Hypergraph Based Feature Selection Technique for Medical Diagnosis

The impact of internet and information systems across various domains have resulted in substantial generation of multidimensional datasets. The use of data mining and knowledge discovery techniques to extract the original information contained in the multidimensional datasets play a significant role in the exploitation of complete benefit provided by them. The presence of large number of features in the high dimensional datasets incurs high computational cost in terms of computing power and time. Hence, feature selection technique has been commonly used to build robust machine learning models to select a subset of relevant features which projects the maximal information content of the original dataset. In this paper, a novel Rough Set based K – Helly feature selection technique (RSKHT) which hybridize Rough Set Theory (RST) and K – Helly property of hypergraph representation had been designed to identify the optimal feature subset or reduct for medical diagnostic applications. Experiments carried out using the medical datasets from the UCI repository proves the dominance of the RSKHT over other feature selection techniques with respect to the reduct size, classification accuracy and time complexity. The performance of the RSKHT had been validated using WEKA tool, which shows that RSKHT had been computationally attractive and flexible over massive datasets.     

Use of the internet and an online personal health record system by US veterans: comparison of Veterans Affairs mental health service users and other veterans nationally

Objective

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) operates one of the largest nationwide healthcare systems and is increasing use of internet technology, including development of an online personal health record system called My HealtheVet. This study examined internet use among veterans in general and particularly use of online health information among VA patients and specifically mental health service users.

Methods

A nationally representative sample of 7215 veterans from the 2010 National Survey of Veterans was used. Logistic regression was employed to examine background characteristics associated with internet use and My HealtheVet.

Results

71% of veterans reported using the internet and about a fifth reported using My HealtheVet. Veterans who were younger, more educated, white, married, and had higher incomes were more likely to use the internet. There was no association between background characteristics and use of My HealtheVet. Mental health service users were no less likely to use the internet or My HealtheVet than other veterans.

Discussion

Most veterans are willing to access VA information online, although many VA service users do not use My HealtheVet, suggesting more education and research is needed to reduce barriers to its use.

Conclusion

Although adoption of My HealtheVet has been slow, the majority of veterans, including mental health service users, use the internet and indicate a willingness to receive and interact with health information online.     

Internet usage and openness to internet-delivered health information among Australian adults aged over 50 years

Background

The cost of healthcare in Australia''s ageing population is ever increasing. In an attempt to reduce these rising costs, the internet has been suggested as a possible means of disseminating health-related information and promoting preventive health behaviours.

Objective

Our objective was to determine the proportion of Australians aged 50-74 years who have internet access, and the characteristics of internet usage, current online health information seeking behaviour, and the willingness to receive unsolicited health information via the Internet.

Method

A random sample of N=25,511 urban older Australians aged 50 to 74 years received a questionnaire via mail and were asked to complete questions concerning variables related to internet usage. N=8,762 returned a competed questionnaire.

Results

Eighty-two per cent of respondents reported having internet access, mainly at home (94%), and the majority actively use this technology (93%). Younger people and those of higher socio-economic status and higher education were more likely to have access (p<.001). Approximately 61% reported actively seeking health-related information online but only 32% expressed a willingness to receive unsolicited health information via the internet. Females were more likely to currently search for health-related information than males but were less likely to be open to receiving unsolicited health information (both p<.001).

Conclusion

According to the data it appears the majority of urban Australians aged over 50 have access to the internet at some location and 60% of them use the internet for health-related purposes. The data also suggests, however, that delivering health information via the internet alone would disadvantage those who are older, less educated, and less financially well-off.     

虚拟医院结构及其实现技术

Internet网络技术的不断发展为实施不受时间和地域限制的交互式技能学习和指导提供了平台。提出的虚拟医院是一个学习和训练医疗救治技术和紧急救治过程等的交互式信息模拟平台,通过虚拟医院提供的医疗诊断救治练习和模拟训练平台,可以帮助医务人员提高和改善诊断治疗技术,学习新的诊疗救治和手术技术,以便更好地救治伤病员。同时,为患者提供一个医院就诊检查模拟过程,从而节省就医时间,提高就医效率。它还可为家庭患者提供医疗和健康技术指导。     

适应信息时代发展信息病理学

病理学的发展与观察工具的发展密切相关,计算机及其网络技术的应用,开创了一信息的新时代;同时对病理学产生了深刻影响。这个影响是把病理学实践推向信息高速公路,使病理学信息化,建立信息病理学,以计算机作为主要教学工具,替代了大课及标本观察,发展学员自学及自学能力。开展远程病理学是使一个边远落后的平这单位的诊断水平迅速达到国际水平的唯一途径。病理学家用很短时间可以从网络上摸清国内外文献中当前研究的现状,在     

Seeking health information online: does limited healthcare access matter?

Consumers facing barriers to healthcare access may use online health information seeking and online communication with physicians, but the empirical relationship has not been sufficiently analyzed. Our study examines the association of barriers to healthcare access with consumers’ health-related information searching on the internet, use of health chat groups, and email communication with physicians, using data from 27 210 adults from the 2009 National Health Interview Survey. Individuals with financial barriers to healthcare access, difficulty getting timely appointments with doctors, and conflicts in scheduling during clinic hours are more likely to search for general health information online than those without these access barriers. Those unable to get timely appointments with physicians are more likely to participate in health chat groups and email physicians. The internet may offer a low-cost source of health information and could help meet the heightened demand for health-related information among those facing access barriers to care.     

Internet report cards on quality: what exists and the evidence on impact

Report cards based on publicly disclosed data abound. Consumers can use the internet to review grades on physicians, hospitals, nursing homes, home health agencies, and insurance plans. The reports differ in their combinations of mortality data, process measures, access scores, and satisfaction surveys. The internet sites also differ by access charge, data sources, and presentation of information. Public disclosure of quality data has had little impact on the behavior of consumers, larger purchasers of health care, and physicians. However, health care provider organizations have responded to the public reports of quality. Analysis of the impact of public report cards is lagging as web-available reports rapidly grow and pay for performance programs emerge.     

医院疫情监控系统的设计与实现

目的 为了提高医院疫情监控的有效性与现代化程度,解决当前相关工作自动化水平低、管理方式方法落后等不足,本研究设计并实现了一种医院疫情监控系统,将疫情监控工作纳入到了医院信息平台建设的范围中.方法 该系统的整体架构采用了富互联应用模式,并按照分层风格的体系结构实现了系统的数据管理层、业务功能层和通信交互层,包括疫情跟踪、...     

利用XDS规范整合不同远程医疗系统

为整合各家远程医疗系统使之互联互通,首先必须共享病人信息及诊疗信息,其次集成电视会议系统的通信。为实现信息共享,采用XDS集成规范增加xDS组件,包括病人管理和文档管理。在集成模式里,远程会诊系统在会诊申请、报告发布时作为文档提供者角色,而在会诊进行、资料审核时则作为文档使用者的角色。为了方便集成,开发YXDS接口模块和一套基于xDs的远程会诊系统。当前可以实现病人信息和诊疗信息（包括医疗图像）在互联网上跨系统的共享,并提出了从远程医疗共享平台走向广义云计算所需的工作。     

基于物联网的呼吸机质控信息系统设计与实践

目的建立基于物联网技术的呼吸机质量控制数据信息系统,对检测的呼吸机通气参数进行实时采集分析,保证采集数据的准确性和真实性。方法应用物联网技术从设备层、感知层、网络层、应用层和展示层入手设计信息系统,系统根据设定算法对采集的数据进行自动计算分析。结果该信息系统实现了呼吸机质量控制数据实时采集、分析及检索,采集的质量控制数据准确无误,节约了50%的时间和人力成本,提升了检测效率。结论呼吸机质量控制数据信息系统的建立,为医院的绩效考核提供了自动生成、不可更改、真实客观的呼吸机质量控制数据。     

苏州社区卫生信息化实践与思考

卫生信息化建设在新医改中占有很重要的地位。苏州在社区卫生服务管理中凸显了社区卫生信息化优势,现已建立的信息化系统包括：全科门诊服务信息一卡通体系、双向转诊信息系统、含健康体检在内的市民健康管理系统等。在苏州社区卫生服务管理中,信息化建设展现出的优势有以下方面：基于健康档案的区域卫生信息平台为提供高质量的社区卫生服务给予了必要的信息支撑;为完善全科医疗的健康档案管理发挥了重要作用;卫生信息化成为双向转诊过程中实现连续负责式协调管理病人的信息交换平台与联系纽带;在社区卫生服务机构的综合管理中亦发挥出巨大效力。应加强信息化建设的规范性,避免信息化系统开发中存在的重技术轻管理倾向,科学收集、挖掘并合理利用信息化系统中的数据,为社区卫生服务提供决策依据。     

Physicians in health care management: 6. Physician *bytes* computer.

Revolutionary advancements in information technology are improving access to medical information, operational efficiency and clinical effectiveness. Health care facilities and agencies are planning to acquire information systems that will affect clinical and administrative functions. Federal and provincial agencies are beginning to define and collect diverse health care data and integrate them in a national database. As the demand for and access to information grows physicians will be key providers and users. They will have increasing access to critical patient data through clinical information systems; however, their practice patterns, clinical outcomes and resource utilization will also be subject to increasing scrutiny. To ensure appropriate use of technology and information systems, careful planning, selection, implementation and management will be needed. Physicians will require training to use the information and systems effectively. They must also recognize the increasing importance of such systems in delivering and managing health care; they must play a pivotal role in resolving management, information and systems issues and in promoting sound information and management strategies; and they must encourage research and education in medical informatics.     

基于物联网的区域心电平台的构建与推广价值探讨

目的：解决我院当前心电信息资源共享问题。方法利用物联网技术构建区域心电综合网络平台,将传统Internet、WIFI、3G等多种网络模式集成于区域心电网络平台。结果该平台的构建实现了医院内部的心电数据集中管理以及远程心电诊断。结论该平台的构建与推广使更多的患者能够享受到三级甲等医院心电专家的诊断服务。