The use of medical information in Nigeria: the influence of gender and status.
BACKGROUND
Medical doctors are important members of the health-care team, and to discharge their duties credibly, they need adequate and quick information. A search of the literature yielded a handful of studies on the provision and organization of medical information with little emphasis on the influence of personal variables on information utilization. We report the influence of gender and status on reasons for searching medical information by doctors in Nigeria.


METHODS
A pretested questionnaire was given to all 720 doctors in active practice working in the 5 Teaching Hospitals of southeastern Nigeria. The returned questionnaires were analyzed by analysis of variance (ANOVA).


RESULTS
Six hundred fourteen of 720 (85.3%) doctors responded to the questionnaire; 116 (18.9%) of the respondents were females. It was found that among the male resident doctors the most common reason for searching medical information was for examination preparation, which had 356 (89.9%) positive respondents, followed by career development, 340 (85.9%). For the female residents, updating knowledge was the most common reason, with 90 (91.8%) positive respondents followed by examination preparation, 87 (88.8%). Updating knowledge was the most common reason for both the male and female consultants, followed by research for teaching and publication.


CONCLUSIONS
The male resident doctors were more concerned with passing their professional examinations, and that was their main reason for searching medical information. The other groups searched information mostly to update their knowledge. Better medical practice was not an important reason to any of the groups. This attitude should be changed through continuing medical education (CME), which refers to a specific form of continuing education that helps those in the medical field maintain competence and learn about new and developing areas of their field.
Okoro
Clara C
CC
Imo State University, Owerri, Nigeria.
Okoro
Iheanyi
I
D000704:Analysis of Variance; D002322:Career Mobility; D002568:Certification; D002983:Clinical Competence; D004502:Education, Medical, Continuing; D005260:Female; D006784:Hospitals, Teaching; D006801:Humans; D057226:Information Seeking Behavior; D008297:Male; D008505:Medical Staff, Hospital / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D009549:Nigeria; D012737:Sex Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires