| Learning Objective #1: Describe a study conducted to determine if there are successful patterns of health-information seeking that can be documented and taught to others | |||
| Learning Objective #2: Identify search options utilized by clinical nurses |
Methods: Participants will be given a scenario encountered in clinical practice and will be asked to search for appropriate web sites that satisfy the need for health-related information. A commercial software tool will capture the processes and steps the information seeker utilizes to successfully discover appropriate health information. The processes will be cataloged and grouped to determine successful and unsuccessful patterns. Participants will be asked to evaluate the success of their searches by a short questionnaire administered when they determine that they have completed the assigned search. The theoretical framework is Ellis' Model for Information Seeking.
Findings: This study will be completed in the winter of 2005 and the results will be available by the Conference.
Discussion: A projected outcome is to identify retrieval characteristics that could improve dissemination of the most current health information from the Internet, and generally improve the consumers' ability to locate and retrieve quality health information on the Internet. The capability to access health information on the Internet has the potential to dramatically influence consumers' health care and lifestyle choices. This study will serve as the foundation to improve the quality of health information Internet searches for nurses who, in turn, can help assist consumers to find information on the Internet.