| Summary: | 碩士 === 國立臺灣大學 === 衛生政策與管理研究所 === 88 === Information asymmetry occurs in health care market and the information available for health care choice is not enough. Accordingly, it is hard for patients to select ideal health care providers. The development of the Internet accelerates information communication. The population of the Internet users and the numbers of medical-related websites are skyrocketing in Taiwan. When the Internet users seek for information regarding health care choice, whether the information on the Internet can help them is a subject worth studying.
The theme of this study focus on the information that can help consumers make health care choices. On the supply side, the researcher browsed and analyzed the contents appeared on websites in order to understand the information for health care choice. On the demand side, I used a questionnaire via Internet to collect data regarding users’ experiences in searching for the information and their expectation. The following are major findings of this study：
1.Among the three types of websites─the health authority, hospitals, and other institutions, hospitals provide the most abundant information for selecting health care providers, however the information is limited to basic introduction to hospitals. Unlike the websites of hospitals, the other two types offer little information concerning health providers. Therefore, the Internet didn’t give much information on selecting hospitals and doctors.
2.Of all medical and health information available on the Internet, health promotion information and general medical knowledge are the most popular ones. The second is the information for health care provider choice. The last on line is medical consultation services.
3.Of all information for health care choice available on the Internet, three of items, in order of the most frequently used, are: “outpatient timetables”, “introduction to departments of hospitals”, and “telephone numbers of hospitals and giving the explanation for registration. ”; 25.6% of users found it unsatisfied or very unsatisfied to access the information because of insufficient information available. About 65.2% of users maintained the lack of information of doctors’ profiles.
4.If the information for health care choice are available on the Internet, 92.5% of the respondents would feel helpful. The most helpful information items are “symptoms of various common ailments and knowledge of treatment” and “various elementary knowledge of health promotion.” The third one is the information for health care choice. Five types of this information are “suggestions for department according to symptoms,” “outpatient schedules of clinics and hospitals, “specialty description of hospitals or doctors,” “the road map and telephone numbers of hospitals and clinics,” and“ the medical disputes of hospitals and doctors.”
5.Fators associated with the use of internet to search for the information for health care choice are: older, with a professional medical background, spending longer time surfing on the Internet, searching for information through the Internet more often, seeing a doctor for evermore and very requiring related information before seeking medical aid.
The findings of this study suggested the health authority should evaluate how to gather helpful information for health care choice. Then through the Internet, the widely diffused information are available for those who need it before seeking medical aids.
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