Internet Use among Community-Based Rehabilitation Workers in Bosnia and Herzegovina: A Cross-Sectional Survey

Abstract

Purpose: The Internet may be one way to support and improve rehabilitation practice and service delivery in low-and middle-income countries (LMICs) such as Bosnia and Herzegovina. Little information exists on use of the Internet to enhance the practice and professional development of community-based rehabilitation (CBR) workers in LMICs. The purpose of this study was to assess the patterns of and barriers to Internet use by CBR workers in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Methods: Participants were CBR workers (physiotherapists, physiatrists, and technicians) from Bosnia and Herzegovina who attended a conference or workshop in 2005. A cross-sectional questionnaire was administered in the local language to assess Internet use. Descriptive results were summarized in tables. Bivariate and multiple logistic regressions were used to assess factors associated with Internet use. Results: A total of 33% of respondents had never used the Internet. Common barriers to Internet use included ''not enough time'' (24%), ''no access'' (23%), and ''lack of skill'' (18%). Participants with higher levels of education had greater odds of using the Internet than physiotherapy school graduates (odds ratio ¼ 7.6, p ¼ 0.016) and had greater odds of using the Internet to obtain medical, rehabilitation, or health information (odds ratio ¼ 5.8, p ¼ 0.028). Conclusions: Improving CBR workers' access to the Internet and their proficiency in using it may enable them to obtain valuable rehabilitation-related information and enhance communication among CBR workers, potentially translating into improved rehabilitation services for people with disabilities in LMICs.Key Words: evidence-based practice; Internet; low-income population; Bosnia-Herzegovina. Ré sultats : En tout, 33 % des ré pondants ont dit n'avoir jamais utilisé Internet. Les obstacles les plus fré quemment mentionné s sont notamment « le manque de temps » (24 %), le fait de « ne pas avoir accè s à Internet » (23 %) et le « manque de compé tences » (18 %) pour le faire. Les participants ayant un niveau d'é ducation supé rieur é taient plus nombreux à avoir la possibilité d'utiliser Internet (7,6, p ¼ 0,016) que les diplô mé s locaux en physiothé rapie et avaient plus de chances (5,8, p ¼ 0,028) d'utiliser Internet pour obtenir de l'information dans les domaines de la mé decine, de la ré adaptation ou des renseignements sur la santé . 445From:

Computer and Internet Use among Tertiary Healthcare Providers and Trainees in a Nigerian Public Hospital

“…The findings on further training in computer and the Internet correspond with previous studies such as Adeleke et al [16] where participants wanted more training in electronic data analysis; Gour & Srivasta [41] with demands on provision for computer training and Cullen [24] with training in the identification, use, and application of evidence in practice. Other corroborating reports are Salako & Tiamiyu [50] on how to enhance efficiency in academic pursuance; Yeung [30] on benefits of technology-enabled training; Ajayi [31] on the introduction of health informatics and Chan et al [51] reported that a group of primary care nurses with consensus required training with a view to improving their computer use.…”

“…Coit [47] also reported that this constraint was triggered by workload of healthcare providers and Mechanic [48] said that it could be reallocated to make more meaningful communication through the use of the Internet. However, Yeung et al [30] refuted time constraints as an inhibiting factor to care provision, as it was reported to have less influence on Internet use among participants from developing nations relative to their contemporaries in the developed nations. Access to healthcare information has become a key international development issue [49] and improved proficiency in the use of computer and the Internet had been recommended [30] as one way to improve access to invaluable health information among healthcare professionals.…”

“…However, Yeung et al [30] refuted time constraints as an inhibiting factor to care provision, as it was reported to have less influence on Internet use among participants from developing nations relative to their contemporaries in the developed nations. Access to healthcare information has become a key international development issue [49] and improved proficiency in the use of computer and the Internet had been recommended [30] as one way to improve access to invaluable health information among healthcare professionals. It is quiet alluring that this current study reveals general quest for further training in the use of computer (95.8%), the Internet (93.4%) and specifically, e-mail (91.1%) with all the trainees (100%) in the study seeking for further training.…”

“…For instance, researchers [26-27 and 24] reported that providers were influenced to use these technologies in order to gain knowledge on how to avoid contracting diseases from the patients, awareness on disease outbreaks and to discover latest research on specific diseases. Similarly, researchers [28][29][30] have reported confidence to obtain answers, issuance of prescriptions, booking of appointments and the ability of the technology to access current health information to support evidence-based practice as reasons for using computer and the Internet.…”

Internet utilization for health information and its associated factors among undergraduate students in Addis Ababa University, Ethiopia - A cross sectional study

“…Among currently available technologies only the Internet has the potential to deliver universal access to up-to-date health care information. The number of Internet users has been dramatically increased worldwide it reaches an estimated 3.89 billion people and this growth has represented a seven fold increase from the year 2000 to 2015 [1]. In the year 2011, about 88% of the US people use the Internet service which is considerably high compared to 55% in the year 2000.…”