Background: As 54% of Australians have access to the internet, it might be expected that people scheduled for surgery would look for information on it. No reported Australian studies have quantified internet use by patients before surgery.
Methods: Patients scheduled for elective surgery in two Sydney teaching hospitals were asked to complete self-administered questionnaires while waiting in preadmission clinics. Detail on sources of information consulted about their condition was requested. A small sample was asked about the sites visited and the self-reported usefulness of the information found.
Results: Ten per cent (95% CI: 8.5-11.5) of 1571 patients who participated had searched the internet for information relating to their condition. Logistic regression showed that these patients were significantly more likely to be younger than 60 years (P < 0.001; OR: 3.28; CI: 1.99-5.4), to be employed (P < 0.001; OR: 2.27; CI: 1.52-3.4), and to have a higher level of education (P = 0.001; OR: 1.9; CI: 1.28-2.83). Patients of Hospital 1 were significantly more likely to access the internet for information on their condition than those at Hospital 2 (P = 0.002; OR: 1.85; CI: 1.28-2.7). The most nominated sources of information were friends and relatives (20%) and books or magazines (15%).
Conclusion: In contrast to anecdote, use of the internet to access information prior to elective surgery appears low. Its absolute use compared with other sources of information is also low. More traditional forms of communication appear to still pay an important role in this setting.