Background Methodology Current Survey Analysis Copyright Version française

Raw data for the survey Feb-Mar 2001
 
Your usage of the medical Internet:
 
You have been using the Internet for: (2974 responses)
Less than 6 months  ... 5.85 %
6 to 12 months  ..... 8.88 %
1 to 3 years  ................. 33.36 %
4 to 6 years  ................. 33.86 %
7 years or more  .......... 18.06 %
  
and access it mainly with: (2940 responses)
own machine  ............................................. 88.54 %
shared machine  ...... 11.46 %
from work (2317 responses)
Daily  ................................... 68.28 %
Weekly  ..... 9.06 %
Monthly  . 1.25 %
Less than once a month  . 1.21 %
Spasmodically  . 1.38 %
Rarely  .. 2.81 %
Never  ......... 16.01 %
  
from home (2868 responses)
Daily  ..................................... 73.43 %
Weekly  ......... 17.05 %
Monthly  . 1.64 %
Less than once a month  . 1.46 %
Spasmodically  . 1.88 %
Rarely  . 1.26 %
Never  .. 3.28 %
 
I use the following Internet facilities (2973 responses)
Browsing Web sites  ............................................... 92.77 %
Email  ................................................. 96.27 %
Newsletter  ............................ 55.3 %
List/newsgroup for READING only  ............... 29.36 %
List/newsgroup for participating  ............. 24.59 %
Other  ............... 28.02 %
 
Mostly, I search for: (2892 responses)
Description of disease  .................................. 67.05 %
Clinical trials  ................... 37.93 %
Medical literature  .......................................... 82.88 %
Support groups  ............. 25.76 %
Not sure  ... 5.74 %
 
What type of sites do you go to first ? (2907 responses)
Non-profit  .................... 38.7 %
Support  ............ 23.39 %
Hospital  ............ 23.05 %
Medical Professionals sites  .................................... 70.79 %
Consumer Web sites  ................ 31.48 %
Commercial  ....... 13.83 %
Pharma. Inc.  .......... 18.64 %
Other  ........ 15.69 %
 
In the last 6 months have you sought medical/health in formation for any of the following people ? (2878 responses)
Myself  .................................. 67.48 %
My condition  .................... 38.33 %
My general knowledge  ............................... 61.19 %
My Patient(s)  .............. 26.82 %
My Spouse  ............ 22.62 %
My Child(ren)  ........... 20.92 %
My Parent(s)  ........ 15.43 %
My Relative(s)  ............ 22.45 %
My Friend(s)  .............. 27.17 %
Other  ........ 15.22 %

Most important issue facing the Internet
In your opinion, what are the most critical issues facing the Internet and especially the medical Internet?
  Nb of
responses		 No
opinion		 Important issue
Accuracy of information3000  .... 9.47 % ......................................................... 90.53 %
Trustworthiness2997  ..... 12.28 % ....................................................... 87.72 %
Availability of information2999  .... 10.64 % ........................................................ 89.36 %
Finding things/navigating around2997  .... 11.21 % ........................................................ 88.79 %
Privacy2993  ...... 17.37 % ..................................................... 82.62 %
Unsolicited Commercial Email (Spam)2984  ....... 19.27 % .................................................... 80.73 %
Security of electronic commerce2983  ....... 20.78 % ................................................... 79.22 %
Equal access for all2983  ....... 21.12 % .................................................. 78.88 %
Speed/Bandwidth2975  ....... 21.08 % ................................................. 78.92 %
Cost2982  ....... 19.38 % .................................................... 80.61 %
Paying for online services or information2977  ........ 22.64 % ................................................ 77.37 %
Pornography2972  ........... 32.6 % ........................................... 67.39 %
"Junk" web sites2972  .......... 30.92 % ............................................ 69.08 %
Intellectual property/Copyright2975  ......... 26.42 % ............................................... 73.58 %
Not adapted to disable or impair people2962  .......... 31.57 % ............................................ 68.43 %
Government regulation2981  ......... 26.64 % ............................................... 73.36 %
Censorship2977  .......... 30.43 % ............................................ 69.56 %
Commercialisation/Advertising2984  ......... 26.61 % ............................................... 73.4 %
No information on illegal services in my country2950  .............. 42.88 % .................................... 57.11 %

Patients only
I have discussed the results of my Internet searches for medical/health information with my care provider(s) (1635 responses)
Yes  ................................ 63.12 %
This is helpful because: (1055 responses)
communication is improved  ......................... 49.29 %
I get more knowledgable  ..................................... 72.51 %
consultation is more constructive  .............................. 59.05 %
No  ................... 36.88 %
 
I have used on-line medical consultation services offered by Web sites (1396 responses)
Yes  ................. 33.74 %
Occasionally  ......................................... 81.39 %
Frequently  .......... 18.61 %
No  .................................. 66.26 %
 
I engage in e-mail correspondence with my own healthcare provider(s) (1509 responses)
Yes  ........ 14.18 %
Occasionally  ............................................. 89.64 %
Frequently  ...... 10.36 %
No  ........................................... 85.82 %
 
I use the Internet to seek second opinions on medical diagnoses (1649 responses)
Yes  ...................... 43.36 %
No  ............................. 56.64 %
Do you seek out information from medical professional sites, or section dedicated to medical professional? (1594 responses)
Yes  ....................................... 77.67 %
because you prefer having access to more complex info  ......................................... 81.61 %
because the info you access usually is too basic  .................... 38.19 %
if you do not understand the information you read: (1117 responses)
you ask to your physician  ..................... 41.63 %
you do alternatives searches to clarify info  ........................................... 85.77 %
No  ............ 22.33 %
  
I use the Web to search for information on drugs: (1574 responses)
Yes  ......................................... 81.45 %
such as (1272 responses)
interactions  .......................................... 82.78 %
side effects  .............................................. 90.64 %
generic drugs  ...................... 42.69 %
No  .......... 18.55 %
 
I discuss the drug info I find with my care provider(s): (1327 responses)
Yes  ........................... 52.98 %
Occasionally  ...................................... 75.59 %
Frequently  ............. 24.41 %
No  ........................ 47.02 %
  
I buy drugs via on-line pharmacy services: (1613 responses)
Yes  ....... 13.64 %
from prescription  ................................ 63.44 %
over the counter  ................... 36.56 %
No  ............................................ 86.36 %

Medical Professionals only
Do your patients discuss healthcare information they have found on the Net with you? (1196 responses)
Yes  ....................................... 77.59 %
This is helpful because:  .......................................... 82.05 %
communication is improved  ............................... 60.59 %
patient grows more knowledgable  .................................. 67.16 %
patient becomes a better "partner"  .............................. 58.55 %
consultation is more constructive  ............................ 54.93 %
This is not helpful because:  ......... 17.95 %
waste of time  ........ 15.25 %
creates mistrust  ................. 32.29 %
loss of physician control  ............. 24.66 %
risk of patient self-treatment  .......................................... 82.06 %
No  ............ 22.41 %
Do you engaged e-mail correspondence with your patients (1044 responses)
Yes  ....................... 44.73 %
Occasionally  .......................................... 82.06 %
Frequently  ......... 17.94 %
No  ............................ 55.27 %

Do you recommend discussion lists to your patients? (1214 responses)
Yes  ............... 28.58 %
No  .................................... 71.42 %
 
Do you recommend Web sites to your patients? (1234 responses)
Yes  .................................... 71.72 %
No  ............... 28.28 %

Do you recommend support groups to your patients? (1225 responses)
Yes  ............................. 56.41 %
No  ...................... 43.59 %
 
I use the Web to search for information on drugs: (1198 responses)
Yes  ........................................... 85.89 %
such as: (962 responses)
interactions  .......................................... 82.54 %
side effects  ............................................ 86.59 %
generic drugs  ............................ 54.05 %
No  ........ 14.11 %
 
I buy drugs via on-line pharmacy services : (1216 responses)
Yes  ..... 9.13 %
from prescription  ............................ 55.96 %
over the counter  ....................... 44.04 %
No  .............................................. 90.87 %

Satisfaction with skills
What are the obstacles you face when using the Web today? (2628 responses)
insufficient IT training  .............. 26.48 %
lack of time  ........................... 52.78 %
inadequate tools and applications  ............ 22.11 %
dissatisfied with information quality  ............... 29.41 %
poor security for medical data  .......... 19.67 %
Internet is a low priority in my organisation  .... 6.32 %
 
I prefer the following Internet search tools (2932 responses)
General search tool  ................... 36.97 %
Medical search tool  ...................... 43.35 %
No opinion  .......... 19.68 %

Indicate the most important characteristic for a search tool (2923 responses)
Ease of use  ............................. 56.11 %
Speed  ...................... 42.63 %
Matches  .............. 27.81 %
Quality of description  ..................... 40.23 %
Relevance of matches  ........................... 53.54 %
Overall rating  ....... 13.07 %

Your profile
Your profession: Medical/Health Professionals (1744 responses)
General Practice  ...... 11.35 %
Medical specialty  ................. 33.83 %
General dentist  . 0.8 %
Dental specialty  . 0.46 %
Nurse  ..... 9.69 %
Pharmacist  .. 2.92 %
Paramedical  .. 2.24 %
Med./health student  .. 2.69 %
Researcher  .... 6.94 %
Alternative medicine  .. 2.29 %
Information provider  ..... 9.12 %
Other  ......... 17.95 %
 
Your profession: Non-Medical (1581 responses)
Researcher/ Librarian  ..... 9.87 %
Carer for ill person(s)  ... 5.38 %
Information provider  ........ 15.56 %
Patient  ................. 32.83 %
Rather not say  ... 5.5 %
Vision Impaired  . 0.38 %
Hearing Impaired  . 0.51 %
Motor Impaired  . 1.08 %
Cognitively Impaired  . 1.01 %
Not Impaired  .. 3.61 %
Other  .............. 26.06 %
 
The organization you work for is in which of the following sector: (2781 responses)
Public (e.g. government)  ............... 28.37 %
Private (e.g. most businesses and individuals)  .................... 39.88 %
Not-for-profit  ........ 14.17 %
Don't know  .. 2.34 %
Other  ........ 15.25 %
 
Your highest level of education completed: (2954 responses)
Grammar School  . 0.54 %
High School or equivalent  .... 7.65 %
Vocational/Technical School (2 year)  ... 4.27 %
Some College  ......... 16.82 %
College Graduate (4 year)  ......... 17.98 %
Master's Degree (MS)  ......... 17.47 %
Doctoral Degree (PhD)  ..... 9.24 %
Professional Degree (MD,JD, etc.)  ............ 22.99 %
Other  .. 3.05 %
 
Your sex: (2953 responses)
Male  ......................... 48.53 %
Female  .......................... 51.47 %

Your age: (2945 responses)
<= 19  . 0.51 %
20-29  ..... 9.03 %
30-39  ........... 20.2 %
40-49  ................ 31.1 %
50-59  ............. 24.89 %
60-69  ...... 10.15 %
70-79  .. 3.53 %
>= 80  . 0.58 %

Your location is (2951 responses)
USA  ............................ 54.25 %
Canada  ... 4.47 %
Mexico  . 1.15 %
Africa  . 0.91 %
Antarctica  . 0 %
Asia  ... 4.51 %
Central America  . 0.47 %
Europe  .............. 26.16 %
Middle East  . 1.76 %
Oceania  . 0.78 %
South America  .. 3.9 %
West Indies  . 0.17 %
Other  . 1.46 %
 
Your primary Language is (2901 responses)
English  .................................. 67.22 %
Chinese  . 0.97 %
Danish  . 0.17 %
Dutch  . 1.07 %
French  ... 4.41 %
German  .. 2.34 %
Greek  . 0.52 %
Hebrew  . 0.45 %
Icelandic  . 0.03 %
Italian  .. 2.79 %
Japanese  . 0.14 %
Korean  . 0.07 %
Norwegian  . 0.31 %
Polish  ... 4.38 %
Portuguese  . 1.83 %
Russian  . 0.48 %
Spanish  .... 7.69 %
Swedish  . 0.17 %
Other  ... 4.96 %

The area where you live is (2949 responses)
Urban  ......................... 48.97 %
Suburban  ................. 32.76 %
Rural  .......... 18.28 %

 

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  http://www.hon.ch/Survey/FebMar2001/index.html Last modified: Mon Mar 4 2002