title: Assessing internet access and use in a medically underserved population: implications for providing enhanced health information services.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The relationship between health information seeking, patient engagement and health literacy is not well understood. This is especially true in medically underserved populations, which are often viewed as having limited access to health information.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To improve communication between an urban health centre and the community it serves, a team of library and information science researchers undertook an assessment of patients' level and methods of access to and use of the Internet.
  
  
  METHODS
  Data were collected in 53 face-to-face anonymous interviews with patients at the centre. Interviews were tape-recorded for referential accuracy, and data were analysed to identify patterns of access and use.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Seventy-two percentage of study participants reported having access to the Internet through either computers or cell phones. Barriers to Internet access were predominantly lack of equipment or training rather than lack of interest. Only 21% of those with Internet access reported using the Internet to look for health information.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The findings suggest that lack of access to the Internet in itself is not the primary barrier to seeking health information in this population and that the digital divide exists not at the level of information access but rather at the level of information use.
authors.affiliation: College of Information Science & Technology, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA. lisl@drexel.edu
authors.forename: Lisl
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Zach
authors.forename: Prudence W
authors.initials: PW
authors.lastname: Dalrymple
authors.forename: Michelle L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Rogers
authors.forename: Heather
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Williver-Farr
mesh_terms: D022126:Access to Information; D000328:Adult; D001292:Attitude to Computers; D054626:Consumer Health Information / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D006266:Health Education / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D007255:Information Services / Q000458:organization & administration*; D020407:Internet / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008297:Male; D008507:Medically Underserved Area; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care; D010353:Patient Education as Topic / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D015143:Philadelphia / Q000453:epidemiology; D011203:Poverty; D036301:Qualitative Research; D014505:Urban Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*