Cancer and Libraries

From surveys I have done I was especially interested in this recent Pew report.

Cancer 2.0

“In 1995 only about 1 in 10 American adults had access to the internet. In 2000, it was up to nearly half of adults. Now, about 75% of adults and 95% teenagers in the U.S. have internet access.

Survey data from the Pew Internet Project and the California HealthCare Foundation show that while internet access is the norm, adults living with chronic disease are significantly less likely than healthy adults to go online:

81% of adults reporting no chronic diseases go online.
62% of adults living with one or more chronic disease go online.

It is important to note that 80% of adults who provide care to their parents or another loved one have internet access. So while internet access is unevenly distributed, especially among age groups, many people have “second degree” access.”

Headings:
The majority of U.S. adults have internet access, including those who are living with chronic disease.
Broadband changed us as internet users; mobile is the new game-changer.
Cancer patients are likely to be engaged in their care.
Health professionals dominate the information mix.
People learn from each other, not just from institutions and health professionals.
The social life of health information is robust.
The internet is like a secret weapon – if someone has access to it.
Broadband + mobile + chronic disease = our future.

Health and wellness queries are usually in the top five most asked reference questions in public libraries. Through understanding the dimensions of just this one serious and chronic disease, we might gain insights into how to better provide services for these important questions. Indeed, it seems that for now the provision of internet-based information to those with chronic diseases (and presumably older) is a target sweet spot.

Stephen