Internet use and eHealth literacy among health-care professionals in a resource limited setting: a cross-sectional survey

BACKGROUND: Health-care professionals should be able to identify and use reputable health care–information sources from the Internet and other relevant sources of information, in order to make good medical decisions. The level in health professional eHealth literacy and the extent of Internet use in a resource-constrained setting is not well documented. The aim of this study was to assess the extent of Internet use and eHealth literacy among a cross section of health-care professionals at the University of Gondar Comprehensive Specialized Hospital, northwest Ethiopia. METHODS: An institution-based cross-sectional study was conducted to assess Internet use and eHealth literacy among health professionals working at the hospital from November 20 to January 17, 2018. Descriptive analysis was used to describe Internet use and eHealth literacy. Multivariable logistic regression was done to identify which factors were associated with the eHealth literacy of participants. RESULTS: In total, 291 study subjects were approached and included in the study, with a response rate of 98.6%. The majority of respondents were female (53.7%) and the mean age was 30.09±5.025 years. Only 47.4% of survey respondents said that they used the Internet regularly for professional/medical updates. The mean eHealth literacy was 27.840±5.691. The majority of participants with high eHealth literacy were aged 21–29 years. and females were slightly more literate regarding eHealth than males (33.1%). Age, type of profession, salary, and years of experience were significantly associated with eHealth literacy. CONCLUSION: The present data confirm that Internet use and eHealth literacy of health professionals is noticeably good, which clearly suggests that there is an opportunity for eHealth to be integrated in the health-care system in tertiary-health facilities in northern Ethiopia if appropriate training and education is provided.