The level of Internet access and ICT training for health information professionals in sub-Saharan Africa
| Autor: | Lenny Rhine, Grace Ada Ajuwon |
|---|---|
| Rok vydání: | 2008 |
| Předmět: |
Internet
Medical education Informatics business.product_category business.industry Poison control Developing country Health Informatics Library and Information Sciences Suicide prevention Health informatics Access to Information Health Information Management Nursing Information and Communications Technology Librarians Surveys and Questionnaires Needs assessment Internet access Humans Medicine The Internet business Africa South of the Sahara Medical Informatics |
| Zdroj: | Health Information & Libraries Journal. 25:175-185 |
| ISSN: | 1471-1842 1471-1834 |
| DOI: | 10.1111/j.1471-1842.2007.00758.x |
| Popis: | BACKGROUND: Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) are important tools for development. Despite its significant growth on a global scale Internet access is limited in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Few studies have explored Internet access use of electronic resources and ICT training among health information professionals in Africa. OBJECTIVE: The study assessed Internet access use of electronic resources and ICT training among health information professionals in SSA. METHODS: A 26-item self-administered questionnaire in English and French was used for data collection. The questionnaire was completed by health information professionals from five Listservs and delegates at the 10th biannual Congress of the Association of Health Information and Libraries in Africa (AHILA). RESULTS: A total of 121 respondents participated in the study and of those 68% lived in their countries capital. The majority (85.1%) had Internet access at work and 40.8% used cybercafes as alternative access points. Slightly less than two-thirds (61.2%) first learned to use ICT through self-teaching whilst 70.2% had not received any formal training in the previous year. Eighty-eight per cent of respondents required further ICT training. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS: In SSA freely available digital information resources are underutilized by health information professionals. ICT training is recommended to optimize use of digital resources. To harness these resources intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations must play a key role. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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