Research

Teens struggle to find accurate, useful health info online

In a study of how teenagers search the Internet for answers to health questions, U-M researchers found that misspelled words, ambiguous search terms and an imprecise approach to scanning a Web site often prevented students from finding the information they sought.

The study, published in the online Journal of Medical Internet Research, suggests the importance of teaching teens better search strategies as well as encouraging Web site designers to target teens.

"I think a lot of people don't understand how important the Internet has become in terms of health care delivery," says Dr. Caroline Richardson, a study author and physician in the Family Medicine Department at the U-M Health System.

"It is critically important that we learn more about the barriers patients of all ages are facing in accessing relevant health information so that we can continue to improve access to health content on the Internet."

Derek Hansen, a doctoral student at the School of Information, was lead author of the study. Funding for this study was provided under a contract from the Kaiser Family Foundation. In addition to Hansen and Richardson, study authors include Paul Resnick of the School of Information and Holly Derry of the Comprehensive Cancer Center.

The paper can be viewed online at the Journal of Medical Internet Research Web site, http://www.jmir.org/2003/4/e25/index.htm.

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