title: Evaluation of a website that promotes social connectedness: lessons for equitable e-health promotion.
abstract: The online provision of health information and services has been viewed as having the potential to inform and empower health consumers and, ultimately, to promote better health. The Internet can be an innovative tool to deliver services to 'hard-to-reach' population groups, including geographically isolated populations. However, the online platform raises questions regarding the equitable distribution of health services. In this paper we examine a case study of a website that aims to promote health by fostering social connectedness. The website provides information to connect people to locally based community events across Australia. We draw on evaluation findings to examine the socioeconomic and geographical distribution of website usage. A descriptive analysis of web usage statistics revealed a gradient whereby more information is listed and viewed about events in affluent socioeconomic areas. Furthermore, the analysis showed that a greater proportion of information listed and viewed related to urban areas. These results are consistent with broader gradients of Internet access and usage. Drawing on these findings, we identify implications for online health promotion across different population groups, particularly for interventions that do not incorporate an explicit equity focus.
authors.affiliation: SA Community Health Research Unit, Flinders University of South Australia, GPO Box 2100, Adelaide, SA 5001, Australia.
authors.forename: Katy
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Osborne
authors.forename: Katherine
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Patel
mesh_terms: D001315:Australia; D054626:Consumer Health Information / Q000458:organization & administration* / Q000592:standards / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005843:Geography; D006293:Health Promotion / Q000379:methods* / Q000458:organization & administration / Q000592:standards; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet / Q000592:standards; D019982:Organizational Case Studies; D061108:Social Media / Q000458:organization & administration / Q000592:standards / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D060756:Social Networking; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors