You can't ask if you don't know what to ask: a survey of the information needs and resources of hospital outpatients.

Abstract

Objectives: to test public demand for health and sickness information and identify sources of information used by the public.

Methods: using a questionnaire as the basis of a highly structured interview, 274 outpatients or their caregivers from nine clinics in Wellington Hospital, attending for the second or subsequent time, were asked whether they felt they knew enough about their illness and treatment, and where they had obtained their information.

Results: almost half expressed a wish for more illness information and two-fifths wanted to know more about their treatment. Respondents were significantly more satisfied with treatment than illness information. Outpatient comments further indicated dissatisfaction with information. Sixteen sources of information were each used by four or more people, almost 20% of the sample using more than six sources. Health professionals, the hospital doctor in particular, were the most important source of information; informal personal contacts were also widely used.

Conclusions: the results highlight the difficulties of communication between health professionals and clients. The possibility of cooperation between health and information professionals in providing patients with more information is raised.