Information seeking behavioural paths of physicians for diabetes mellitus care: a qualitative comparative analysis of information needs, sources, and barriers

This study addresses diabetes physicians’ information seeking behavioural paths (digital, conventional, interpersonal) which lead to information needs satisfaction and the barriers encountered in this process. The study was based on empirical evidence from a survey of 159 physicians. Theoretical analysis was informed by Wilson’s model of information seeking behaviour. The data were analysed using fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis method. The method was successful in identifying five behavioural paths leading to physicians’ information needs satisfaction (professional/health coaching) which demonstrate different relationships between information sources (conventional/interpersonal/digital) and information barriers (personal/digital illiteracy) and five behavioural paths that are not leading to satisfaction

The participatory medicine attitudes of general practitioners in Greece: an information behaviour perspective

General Practitioners (GPs) need to keep up with a wide range of medical conditions and at the same time closely interact with their patients to provide preventive care and health education. This requires effectively sourcing, utilizing, and sharing quality information with their patients as well as creating participatory and shared decision-making health environments. This paper explores the information seeking behaviour of GPs and their attitudes towards participatory medicine (PM). A questionnaire based survey with GPs in Greece, registered with the Hellenic Society of General Practitioners (HSGP) was conducted and included an exploration of three different information seeking dimensions (information needs, sources and barriers) that were associated with GPs' perceptions of PM. The survey results demonstrate an interplay of demographic and contextual factors in the choice of information sources and the barriers encountered and conclude that the effective utilization of online information sources is an essential condition for PM practices

Seeking creativity: A case study on information problem solving in professional music

This study explored the information seeking behavior of a professional jazz musician during creative work. It aimed at revealing information seeking activities necessary to execute present-day musical projects. A single case was studied in depth. First, a narrative interview was conducted to reveal project phases and corresponding information seeking behavior. Second, hereupon a semi-structured interview was taken to identify information seeking activities per phase. Results indicate that the musician deliberately searched for musical information especially in the first project phases. The internet was used as main source. Both data and goal driven strategies were applied, of which the latter were relatively scarce. This means that in this case the musician sporadically searched information based on a contemplated search plan. Future research should aim at generalizing findings of this case. It should further validate the underlying analytical framework that proved to be useful for describing and categorizing musical information seeking behavior

A case study of Kanban implementation within the Pharmaceutical Supply Chain

The paper explores the implementation of the kanban system, which is a Lean technique, within the Pharmaceutical Supply Chain (PSC). The case study provides insight to the benefits and challenges arising from the application of this technique, within a group of cooperative pharmacists, in Greece. The research questions developed from the review of the literature were tested using evidence from field-based, action research within a pharmaceutical organisation. The reported case study contributes to the longer term debate on assessing the Lean maturity level within the healthcare sector. There are two primary findings: i) that the adoption of kanban system provides a strategic benefit and improves the quality of services. ii) it also provides a basis for a strategy of operational change; it gives the opportunity to the organisation to move away from the current push delivery and logistics systems toward improved logistics strategy models

Linking exploration to academic performance: The role of information seeking and academic self-efficacy

Purpose: Substantial empirical research has addressed the antecedents of students’ academic performance. Building on these insights, the purpose of this paper is to extend the related literature by investigating the impact of students’ exploration on their academic performance. Furthermore, to provide a better understanding of this relationship the authors incorporate two sequential mediators, namely, information seeking and academic self-efficacy. Design/methodology/approach: Quantitative approach using self-report questionnaires. This study was conducted in the Hellenic Open University through a specially designed questionnaire. The authors collected data from 248 students attending a postgraduate course in Healthcare Management. Findings: The results showed that information seeking and in turn academic self-efficacy mediate the positive association between exploration and academic performance. Both theoretical and practical implications are also discussed. Originality/value: Students’ exploration plays an important role in enhancing both their information seeking and self-efficacy which in turn affects their academic performance. © 2017, © Emerald Publishing Limited

Information seeking behavior of patients with diabetes mellitus: a cross-sectional study in an outpatient clinic of a university-affiliated hospital in Athens, Greece

Background The purpose of this study is to examine the information behavior of diabetic patients, a relatively unexplored field of diabetes care, including their needs for information, resources used, obstacles encountered and degree of satisfaction for diabetes-related information acquisition. Methods 203 patients (males: 110, type 2:172) followed-up in the outpatient Diabetes Clinics of a University-affiliated hospital in Greece were assessed, using a validated questionnaire. Results Patients identified diet (61.4%) and diabetic complications (41.9%) as “the most important” for their information needs and the treating physician (94.6%) for information resources. Internet importance and frequency of use ranked low. Main obstacles to information seeking were “lack of time” and “cost”. Most patients (71.4%) stated they were “quite” or “very satisfied” with the current possibilities of information seeking. Conclusions Diabetic patients’ stated information needs and information sources, as well as main obstacles to obtaining information could potentially have important implications in designing a future information campaign

Work-related factors influencing doctors search behaviors and trust toward medical information resources

Regulation of clinical practice is a characteristic aspect of the medical profession. Regardless of whether this regulation derives from government-sourced guidelines or materials from government-sponsored institutions, it results in a high production of information resources (institutional information resources), which are disseminated to the clinical stuff in order to ensure compliance. In that case, the issue of credibility of these information resources might arise, since medical practice is characterized by a high frequency of change. The latter involves a continuous effort on the part of the clinical staff, which is motivated by work-related factors (e.g., need for compliance) or personal motivation (e.g., need for self-improvement). In this study we consider a simple trust model, according to which we assume that perceived trust is a direct antecedent of perceived credibility. We evaluate whether work-related or personal motivating factors influence the relation between perceived credibility and trust toward institutional information sources and how the effect of each factor affects this relation. Findings suggest that work-related factors have a higher impact on the relation between credibility and trust than personal motivation factors, while they are stressing the important role of hospital libraries as a dissemination point for government-sponsored information resources

A cross-sectional survey interconnecting health information seeking behavior with clinical data of type 2 diabetes mellitus patients

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is the investigation of type 2 diabetes patients' information seeking behavior in terms of their information needs, sources and barriers faced by patients when seeking information. The information seeking behavior is associated with clinical patient data. Design/methodology/approach: The relevant literature is reviewed, and the results of a cross-sectional survey informed by Wilson's macro-model of information seeking behavior are reported. The survey includes 106 outpatients from the diabetes clinic of a Greek major university hospital and includes information seeking behaviors and patient's clinical evidence. Findings: The most important health information needs are related to the complications, symptoms and causes of diabetes, to the proper diet for diabetics and the measures adopted to avoid foot complications. Furthermore, the most important information resources were physicians, ophthalmologists, books, broadcast media and family members. Obstacles encountered during information seeking include the complicated nature of health information, which involves scientific terms as well as psychological issues. The diabetes stage is correlated with information needs for diabetes medication, while the years from the first diagnosis are negatively correlated with the use of informal sources. Research limitations/implications: The information needs and sources of diabetic patients, as well as the main obstacles to this pursuit, could potentially have important implications in designing a future information campaign and information services for diabetes patients. Originality/value: The Wilson's macro-model of information seeking has been applied to the diabetic patients' information seeking behavior; while information needs, information sources and information obstacles are correlated with clinical evidence from patients’ hospital records. © 2020, Emerald Publishing Limited

Information seeking behavior of patients with diabetes mellitus: A cross-sectional study in an outpatient clinic of a university-affiliated hospital in Athens, Greece

Background: The purpose of this study is to examine the information behavior of diabetic patients, a relatively unexplored field of diabetes care, including their needs for information, resources used, obstacles encountered and degree of satisfaction for diabetes-related information acquisition. Methods:203 patients (males:110, type 2:172) followed-up in the outpatient Diabetes Clinics of a University-affiliated hospital in Greece were assessed, using a validated questionnaire. Results: Patients identified diet (61.4%) and diabetic complications (41.9%) as "the most important" for their information needs and the treating physician (94.6%) for information resources. Internet importance and frequency of use ranked low. Main obstacles to information seeking were "lack of time" and "cost". Most patients (71.4%) stated they were "quite" or "very satisfied" with the current possibilities of information seeking. Conclusions: Diabetic patients' stated information needs and information sources, as well as main obstacles to obtaining information could potentially have important implications in designing a future information campaign. © 2015 Kalantzi et al.; licensee BioMed Central