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Access to Women's Health Information
IntroductionIn May 2002 Women’s Health Victoria (WHV) commissioned Market Access, an independent market research company, to undertake a comprehensive study to identify mechanisms to ensure better access to health information for women.The project involved several components, including:
The project was completed in April 2003. 
Emergent themesSources of health informationThe active sources of health information used by the majority of Victorian women include doctors, followed by family and friends, pamphlets, pharmacists and books. By contrast, only a small number of women use telephone helplines, however, the literature suggested that they have particular value for women in certain crisis situations. There are some groups of women for whom there are currently limitations in the provision of and access to appropriate health information. These groups include those from diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds, those who do not have a regular doctor, Indigenous and elderly women. For these women, specifically targeted approaches to the provision of health information will continue to be required to meet their needs. A critical and consistent issue in this regard is the provision of health resources in an appropriate breadth of languages to meet the needs of the diverse language groups within the population.
Satisfaction with health informationPrevious studies have documented the difficulties that both health professionals and health consumers experience in attempting to filter and evaluate the quality of health information available to them. Overall, Victorian women rate the quality of health information they receive quite highly, with information from doctors given the highest rating, followed by pharmacists, books and pamphlets. Women from diverse linguistic backgrounds and those who do not have a regular GP are less satisfied with the quality of health information they receive, indicating the need for a particular focus on these groups. Service providers and those in government, the bureaucracy and other health agencies also question the quality of health information available for their purposes. This is a considerable gap specifically in relation to the availability of a credible gendered analysis of health data as an input into policy and program development.
The role of GPs in health information provisionA strong and consistent finding throughout the research was that the role of GPs in the provision of health information is critical. The survey of Victorian women showed that GPs were the most used and the most preferred channel for health information. The literature reviews highlighted that the role of GPs in health education and in promoting health related behaviour change was important to both the GPs and to the women they treated. Notably, the provision of written information has been consistently shown to be more effective in the context of the personalised advice and support offered during a consultation.
New technologies in health informationThe internet is an emerging medium in the provision of health information, however, some groups of women are not using or do not have access to the internet. While the gap is not as large as it has been in the past, there is some way to go before the internet can be considered to offer equal value and equal opportunity to all women. A significant issue with the internet as a medium for health information is related to the sheer volume of information that is available, with related questions about the quality of much of that information. Hence, there is a need for appropriate filtering and quality control functions. While some such facilities are available, there is a need for assistance to both health consumers and health care providers in assessing the information that is accessed through the internet. It is not yet clear how the internet is substituting for other methods of information gathering. Use of the internet is also changing rapidly, meaning that ongoing research will be needed to track use of this medium and to understand how best to maximise its potential in providing women with the health information they need. Alongside the internet, there is development of other electronic media at the point of care, including desktop resources, Computerised Patient Information Systems, Patient Decision Aids and clinical practice guidelines. Given the increasingly wide spread use of these systems, their capacity to enhance and assist the role of health care providers and the opportunities they afford for ensuring that health consumers are provided with high quality information, there is both a need and an opportunity to work with the providers of such systems to optimise their value to consumers of health information.
ConclusionThis research has demonstrated that while there is an enormous amount of health information available and a wide variety of channels for accessing that information, not all information needs are satisfactorily met. It is important to recognise the primacy of the role of GPs in providing information and to develop mechanisms to ensure that GPs have the appropriate information to pass on. Some specific groups of women are not adequately catered for and need to be specifically targeted. There is a need to provide policy makers and program developers with easy access to a credible gendered analysis of health data. Further, and partly because of the amount of information available, there is a need to assist women as health consumers, health care providers and opinion leaders in filtering and assessing the quality of the health information that is available.WHV will utilize the research to inform its future service delivery including ways of working with others to ensure better access to quality health information for women.
Final reportsThe final reports are now available as listed:1. A literature review of women as information seekers Michael Murphy, Dr. Barbara Murphy, Dr. Dawn Kanost Women's Health Victoria, 2003, Booklet, 61 pages, The review focused on identifying women’s preferred channels for accessing health information, the critical times for accessing health information and any barriers that existed for women in their access to health information. A key aspect was related to the emerging trends in access to health information. Electronic copy is available for no cost. (PDF 208 KB)
 2. A survey of women as information seekers Michael Murphy, Dr. Barbara Murphy, Women's Health Victoria, 2003, Booklet, 35 pages, ISBN 0 9581297 2 X, $6.00 The survey of 500 women focused on identifying women’s active and passive sources of health information. It identified their preferred channels for accessing health information and explored perceptions of the quality of the health information and difficulties of accessing health information. Electronic copy is available for no cost. (PDF 117 KB)
3. A literature review of health professionals as information providers Michael Murphy, Dr. Barbara Murphy, Dr. Dawn Kanost, Women's Health Victoria, 2003, Booklet, 61 pages, The focus of the review was how healthcare providers access information, both for their own education and in their role as an information channel for women. Electronic copy is available for no cost. (PDF 204 KB)
4. Issues for opinion leaders and service providers Michael Murphy, Women's Health Victoria, 2003, Booklet, 21 pages, ISBN 0 9581297 4 6, $6.00 This report provides an analysis of the needs that opinion leaders, policy influencers and service providers have of a women’s health organisation. The information was collected through a series of interviews with people from across the health sector. Electronic copy is available for no cost. (PDF 74 KB) 5. Research summary Michael Murphy, Women's Health Victoria, 2003, Booklet, 13 pages, ISBN 0 9581297 5 4, $6.00 This report provides a summary of the separate components of the project and outlines the key themes that arose during the research. Electronic copy is available for no cost. (PDF 49 KB) The five reports can be purchased as a full set for $25.00 plus $10.00 postage
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