EHealth study – Trends of source of health information among middle- and older-age adults in Taiwan

Purpose: This pilot study aims to examine trends of health information sources and online health information utilization among Chinese middle- and older-age worksite employees. Methods: Two pilot surveys, conducted in summer 2002 and 2008 respectively in Taiwan, both with measures on common sources of health information among middle- and older-age adults (age 40 and older), were used to describe trends of health information sources. Specifically, participants were asked about how they usually obtained health information. Results: A total of 450 worksite employees participated in the 2002 survey, and 208 participated in the 2008 survey. Both samples had similar gender distribution and self-rated health status, although the 2008 sample revealed higher proportion of college or higher education levels (76% vs. 46%). Results showed similar distributions between the two surveys on several common sources of health information, with newspaper or magazine rated as the top source for both surveys (79% versus 71%), followed by TV or radio (62% versus 68%), healthcare providers (51% versus 50%), and friends (31% versus 34%). However, data showed significant increasing trend on the source of health information from the Internet, from less than 6% in 2002 to 68% in 2008. Conclusion: This is the first study conducting such direct comparison among older working adults in Taiwan. Results have implication on the important role online health information can play among Chinese older adult worksite employees.