Background: There is a need to identify interventions that increase help seeking for depression among young adults. Objective: The aim was to evaluate a brief depression information intervention employing health e-cards (personalized emails containing links to health information presented on a Web page). Methods: A randomized controlled trial was carried out with 348 19- to 24-year-olds drawn from the community. Participants were randomized to receive one of three conditions, all of which...

Background: Producing “traditional” e-learning can be time consuming, and in a topic such as eHealth, it may have a short shelf-life. Students sometimes report feeling isolated and lacking in motivation. Synchronous methods can play an important part in any blended approach to learning. Objective: The aim was to develop, deliver, and evaluate an international postgraduate module in eHealth using live interactive webcasting. Methods: We developed a hybrid solution for live...

Background: Rising health insurance premiums represent a rapidly increasing burden on employer-sponsors of health insurance and their employees. Some employers have become proactive in managing health care costs by providing tools to encourage employees to directly manage their health and prevent disease. One example of such a tool is DASH for Health, an Internet-based nutrition and exercise behavior modification program. This program was offered as a free, opt-in benefit to US-based...

Background: Electronic personal health records (PHRs) are increasingly recognized and used as a tool to address various challenges stemming from scattered and incompatible personal health information (PHI) in the contemporary U.S. healthcare system. Although activities on PHR development and deployment have increased in recent years, little has been reported regarding the use and utility of PHRs among low-income and/or elderly populations. Objective: To assess the use and utility of PHRs in a...

Background: Older people are among the segments of the population for which the digital divide is most persistent and are considered to be at risk of losing out on the potential benefits that the information society can provide to their quality of life. Little attention has been paid, however, to relationships between Internet use and actual indicators of health among older people. Objective: The aim of this study was to examine the association between Internet use and self-rated health...

Background: Older adults’ health maintenance may be enhanced by having access to online health information. However, usability issues may prevent older adults from easily accessing such information. Prior research has shown that aging is associated with a unique pattern of cognitive changes, and knowledge of these changes may be used in the design of health websites for older adults. Objective: The goal of the current study was to examine whether older adults use of a health information...

Background: The rapid growth of eHealth could have the unintended effect of deepening health disparities between population subgroups. Most concerns to date have focused on population differences in access to technology, but differences may also exist in the appropriateness of online health content for diverse populations. Objective: This paper reports findings from the first descriptive study of online cancer survivor stories by race and ethnicity of the survivor. Methods: Using the five...

Background: Challenges remain in translating the well-established evidence for management of cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk into clinical practice. Although electronic clinical decision support (CDS) systems are known to improve practitioner performance, their development in Australian primary health care settings is limited. Objective: Study aims were to (1) develop a valid CDS tool that assists Australian general practitioners (GPs) in global CVD risk management, and (2) preliminarily...

Background: Given the rapid changes in the communication landscape brought about by participative Internet use and social media, it is important to develop a better understanding of these technologies and their impact on health communication. The first step in this effort is to identify the characteristics of current social media users. Up-to-date reporting of current social media use will help monitor the growth of social media and inform health promotion/communication efforts aiming to...

Background: The Internet is increasingly utilized by researchers, health care providers, and the public to seek medical information. The Internet also provides a powerful tool for public health messaging. Understanding the needs of the intended audience and how they use websites is critical for website developers to provide better services to the intended users. Objective: The aim of the study was to examine the utilization of the chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) website at the Centers for...

Background: Computer-mediated educational applications can provide a self-paced, interactive environment to deliver educational content to individuals about their health condition. These programs have been used to deliver health-related information about a variety of topics, including breast cancer screening, asthma management, and injury prevention. We have designed the Patient Education and Motivation Tool (PEMT), an interactive computer-based educational program based on behavioral,...