abstract: 'Background: Universal access to information for health professionals is

  a need to achieve ``health for all strategy.{''''} A large proportion of

  the population including health professionals have limited access to

  health information in resource limited countries. The aim of this study

  is to assess information needs among Ethiopian health professionals.

  Methods: A cross sectional quantitative study design complemented with

  qualitative method was conducted among 350 health care workers in

  Feburary26-June5/2012. Pretested self-administered questionnaire and

  observation checklist were used to collect data on different variables.

  Data entry and data analysis were done using Epi-Info version 3.5.1 and

  by SPSS version19, respectively. Descriptive statistics and multivariate

  regression analyses were applied to describe study objectives and

  identify the determinants of information seeking behaviours

  respectively. Odds ratio with 95\% CI was used to assess the association

  between a factor and an outcome variable.

  Results: The majority of the respondents acknowledged the need of health

  information to their routine activities. About 54.0\% of respondents

  lacked access to health information. Only 42.8\% of respondents have

  access to internet sources. Important barriers to access information

  were geographical, organizational, personal, economic, educational

  status and time. About 58.0\% of the respondents accessed information by

  referring their hard copies and asking senior staff. Age, sex, income,

  computer literacy and access, patient size, work experience and working

  site were significantly associated with information needs and seeking

  behaviour. Conclusions: The health information seeking behaviour of

  health professional was significant. The heaklth facilities had neither

  informationcenter such as library, nor internet facilities.

  Conducting training on managing health information, accessing computer

  and improving infrastructures are important interventions to facilitate

  evidence based descions.'
affiliation: 'Andualem, M (Corresponding Author), Univ Gondar, Inst Publ Hlth, Dept
  Hlth Informat, Gondar, Ethiopia.

  Andualem, Mulusew, Univ Gondar, Inst Publ Hlth, Dept Hlth Informat, Gondar, Ethiopia.

  Kebede, Gashaw, Univ Addis Ababa, Sch Informat Sci, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

  Kumie, Abera, Univ Addis Ababa, Sch Publ Hlth, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.'
article-number: '534'
author: Andualem, Mulusew and Kebede, Gashaw and Kumie, Abera
author-email: muler.hi@gmail.com
author_list:
- family: Andualem
  given: Mulusew
- family: Kebede
  given: Gashaw
- family: Kumie
  given: Abera
da: '2023-09-28'
doi: 10.1186/1472-6963-13-534
eissn: 1472-6963
files: []
journal: BMC HEALTH SERVICES RESEARCH
keywords: 'Information; Information need; Information seeking behaviour;

  Information source'
keywords-plus: ACCESS
language: English
month: DEC 27
number-of-cited-references: '29'
orcid-numbers: 'Asemahagn, Mulusew Andualem/0000-0002-0345-9437

  '
papis_id: 830f25cc39b592fbdf8b35a476046320
ref: Andualem2013informationneeds
researcherid-numbers: 'Asemahagn, Mulusew Andualem/J-9889-2019

  Kumie, Abera/AAC-8537-2022'
times-cited: '27'
title: Information needs and seeking behaviour among health professionals working
  at public hospital and health centres in Bahir Dar, Ethiopia
type: article
unique-id: WOS:000329373900002
usage-count-last-180-days: '1'
usage-count-since-2013: '32'
volume: '13'
web-of-science-categories: Health Care Sciences \& Services
year: '2013'