Search for drug information: technology implications for rural consumers and pharmacies.
As they age, baby boomers represent a larger proportion of the population experiencing health-related problems. As such, they are growing users of prescription medications. With pharmaceutical companies increasing their use of the Internet for direct-to-consumer advertising, and boomers leading in the routine use of technology, a shift in the sources used to obtain drug information may occur. Analyzing data from a panel of rural Illinois residents, this paper examines some aspects of the current dynamics of prescription drug information sources and their consequences for rural consumers and pharmacies.
Tripp
C
C
College of Business and Technology, Western Illinois University, Macomb, IL 61455, USA.
Straub
L
L
D022126:Access to Information; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D004346:Drug Information Services; D006801:Humans; D007087:Illinois; D016247:Information Storage and Retrieval; D020407:Internet / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008875:Middle Aged; D010594:Pharmacies; D012424:Rural Population