title: Racial disparities in health information access: resilience of the Digital Divide.
abstract: Policy initiatives of the late 1990s were believed to have largely eliminated the information "Digital Divide." For healthcare consumers, access to information is an essential part of the consumer-centric framework outlined in the recently proposed national health information initiative. This study sought to examine how racial/ethnic characteristics are associated with Internet use and online health information. Using a cross-sectional nationwide study of reported Internet use and information search in 2000 and 2002, we studied a stratified sample of computer users from the Pew Internet and American Life Project surveys. Adjusted estimates of race/ethnicity and income effects on Internet use and search behaviors were derived from generalized estimating equations. Results show wide gaps in the use of computers between Hispanics and Whites (OR = 0.593 [0.440, 0.798]) and between African-Americans and Whites (OR = 0.554 [0.427, 0.720]) in 2000 significantly narrowed in 2002 (OR of Hispanic to white = 1.250 [0.874, 1.789]; OR of African-American to Whites = (0.793 [0.551, 1.141]). Gaps in access to the Internet, however, remained consistent between 2000-2002. Differences in health information seeking between Hispanics and Whites existed in both 2000 and 2002. 56% of White Internet users at some time searched for online health information, whereas 42% of Hispanic Internet users did so in 2000. By 2002, these percentages had increased to 13.4 and 15.8%, respectively. Data highlight the persistence of "Digitally Underserved Groups," despite recent Divide reduction strategies.
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Policy and Administration, School of Information Science and Technology, Pennsylvania State University, 114 Henderson HHD, University Park, PA 16802, USA. dpl10@psu.edu
authors.forename: Daniel P
authors.initials: DP
authors.lastname: Lorence
authors.forename: Heeyoung
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Park
authors.forename: Susannah
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Fox
mesh_terms: D022126:Access to Information; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005006:Ethnicity; D006801:Humans; D044469:Racial Groups; D012935:Social Justice; D014481:United States