E-HEALTH: CHARACTERISTICS OF CANADIANS USING THE INTERNET FOR HEALTH INFORMATION
S. K. LEE *
Department of Economics and Finance, Shue Yan University, Hong Kong
EDITH SAMUEL
Department of Psychology, Crandall University, Moncton, NB, Canada
ALAN CHAN
Department of Business Administration, Crandall University, Moncton, NB, Canada
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
Information on health matters is one of the most repeatedly retrieved sources on the internet. More and more people are using the web to acquire material relating to the healthcare system. Despite the volume of literature on e-health, no study has yet focused on the geographical comparison of provinces in Canada. This study analyses the characteristics of internet users on health-related issues in the Atlantic region of Canada. Employing the Statistics Canada 2007 survey of Internet Use (CSIU), the study focuses on six explained variables which are alternative therapy, disease, drug use, lifestyle, surgery, and health care systems. Descriptive statistics along with logistic regression methods are used to examine explanatory variables on the basis of geographical regions, age, gender, education, employment, household size, income, marital status, computer expertise, and usage of information.
Keywords: e-health, internet users, health-related issues, Atlantic Canada