The internet as a resource for consumer healthcare

With emerging access to the Internet and valuable healthcare resources onli ne, healthcare consumers have quickly adopted the World Wide Web as a resou rce for healthcare information. Because growing numbers of consumers are ac cessing healthcare information online, it is important to explore how they are using this information in healthcare decision-making, and the eventual outcomes for their health. All English-language articles indexed in Medline related to the use of Inte rnet technology in healthcare education, and published in peer-reviewed jou rnals between 1998 and 2000, were screened for review. 37 studies met the e ligibility criteria. Although demographics remain uneven, with a distinct I nternet access gap existing between the economically advantaged and disadva ntaged, results of studies described in this paper support the effectivenes s of Internet-delivered healthcare information in changing clinical outcome s. Electronic mail and telehealth applications hold promise as a new mode o f communication and information transfer for patients and providers, while at the same time raising issues related to inaccurate and misleading inform ation. The findings of this review support Internet-delivered technologies as an e ffective strategy for the transfer of data and knowledge as well as support for the patient-provider interaction. From the patient's perspective. the Internet provides information, a new mode of connection to the healthcare e nvironment, and access to virtual support groups. Additional research is ne eded to assess the impact and best approaches for use of the Internet as a link to the clinical environment for communication and sharing of patient-c entered clinical information.