Preference for online health information among Chinese

Abstract

If soon-to-be-aged (STBA) adults do not do well in disease prevention or chronic illness care, their health problems may add a heavy load to the health care system and its costs. Objective: This study aims to identify factors that were associated with Chinese STBA adults’ preference for online health information (POHI). Methods: This is a secondary analysis of a cross-sectional survey conducted in 2005-2006 among Hong Kong adults. Results: Out of the 516 respondents, one-third indicated their preference to get health information via the Internet. Five significant independent factors were found to be associated with POHI: 10th grade education or above, being employed, perceiving they had good language ability, knowing someone who could teach them, and Chinese who placed a higher value on learning as they grew older. Conclusions: With these findings, practitioners could work out some ways to support STBA adults for online health-related learning and health literacy.