The demand for consumer health information

Using data from an evaluation of a community-wide informational interventio n, we modeled the demand for medical reference books, telephone advice nurs es, and computers for health information. Data were gathered from random ho usehold surveys in Boise, ID (experimental site), Billings, MT, and Eugene, OR (control sites). Conditional difference-in-differences show that the in tervention increased the use of medical reference books, advice, nurses, an d computers for health information by approximately 15, 6, and 4%, respecti vely. The results also suggest that the intervention was associated with a decreased reliance on health professionals for information. (C) 2001 Elsevi er Science B.V. All rights reserved.