A descriptive project evaluation to determine Internet access and the feasibility of using the Internet for cardiac education.
OBJECTIVE
The study's objective was to evaluate patients attending a cardiac secondary prevention clinic on their accessibility to the Internet and to investigate their perceptions on using the Internet to obtain educational information for secondary prevention.


METHODS
This was a prospective, descriptive, cross-sectional project.


METHODS
The study took place at a tertiary care hospital in Southern Ontario, Canada.


METHODS
The subjects were 50 individuals attending a cardiac secondary prevention clinic. They were primarily male (80%) with an average age of 60 years.


METHODS
A self-administered questionnaire was used that identified demographics, current Internet access, experience with using the Internet for health care information, and perceptions of the utility of Internet information.


RESULTS
Sixty-six percent had Internet access at home, and 51% said they used the Internet daily. A significant number of participants indicated they would access an Internet site for continued educational support after discharge from a secondary prevention cardiac clinic.


CONCLUSIONS
The results from this project evaluation suggest that Internet-based education would be a valuable adjunct to current secondary prevention care delivery models.
Thomson
Nadia R
NR
University Health Network, Toronto, Canada.
Micevski
Vaska
V
D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D005260:Female; D006331:Heart Diseases / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet; D008297:Male; D017533:Marital Status; D008875:Middle Aged; D009864:Ontario; D010353:Patient Education as Topic / Q000379:methods*; D012923:Social Class; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires