Information Seeking Behaviour of Parents of Paediatric Patients for Clinical Decision Making: The Central Role of Information Literacy in a Participatory Setting

Introduction: This study investigated the information seeking behaviour and needs of parents of paediatric patients and their motives for seeking Internet-based information. Method: A questionnaire survey of 121 parents was conducted in a paediatric clinic of a Greek university hospital. Analysis: The data were analysed using SPSS; descriptive statistics were used to summarise the data and non-parametric Mann-Whitney U and Kruskal-Wallis test statistics were performed to identify differences in reported information seeking behaviour. Results: Parents sought further information than that provided by their paediatrician and searched on the Internet to reduce their anxiety and cope better with their children's medical condition. The Internet was the second most important information source used after the paediatrician. The main obstacles parents encountered were the volume and unreliability of Internet health information and the infrequency of visits to the doctor. Conclusions: Informed participation of patients and paediatricians in clinical shared decision-making requires the development of information literacy in both parties. Health information professionals may act as information literacy instigators and educators for parents and paediatricians by means of offering information literacy prescriptions and other information decision aids.