Health information seeking and people with disability: A systematic search and scoping review.

BACKGROUND: Health information and access to it are important aspects of maintaining health. There are 61 million people with disability in the U.S., many of whom experience health disparities. However, it may not be clear to health professionals how people with disability seek health information. OBJECTIVE: Assess the breadth, examine the characteristics, and evaluate the risk of bias in the existing literature related to health information seeking and people with disability. METHODS: The authors conducted a systematic search across five databases (Pubmed, Scopus, PsycINFO, HealthSTAR, and CINAHL) to identify empirical journal articles related to health information seeking among people with disability. Analysis of data items and a quality assessment were completed. RESULTS: Forty-two articles met the criteria for inclusion and were assessed. The articles primarily used survey methodology (50%), and primarily focused on ten disability types, including MS (19%), CP (17%) and general disability (17%). The articles primarily investigated the internet (88%), and healthcare providers (71%) as sources of health information. Trustworthiness (31%), accuracy (29%), and accessibility (29%) were also commonly assessed. The overall quality was high, with room for improvement in minimizing bias. CONCLUSIONS: The literature addressing health information seeking among people with disability is heterogeneous, but generally of high quality. Future research may benefit from an inclusive definition of disability and a more consistent definition of health information. Focused research on best practices and interactions among sources of health information would be valuable additions.

Interventions to Teach Medical Students About Disability: A Systematic Search and Review.

Historically, medical students have received little training about working with patients with disability, but there is now a greater recognition of the need to educate medical students in this domain. The aims of this review were to define the body of literature and to determine effective strategies for teaching medical students about disability. A systematic search protocol executed across six databases identified journal articles reporting interventions implemented to teach disability to medical students. Seventy-seven articles spanning 1960-2018 met inclusion criteria. Most articles reported objectives related to increasing knowledge and skills or changing attitudes. However, only half included evaluations for all of their stated objectives in those domains. In addition, few articles used longitudinal evaluations, resulting in most articles basing conclusions on immediate posttest evaluations. Overall, the reported interventions exhibit a high risk of potential bias, with only 10% of the articles receiving a global quality rating of "good." Thus, although several articles have reported educational interventions to teach medical students about disability, the high risk of bias, incomplete reporting, and limitations of the evaluations prevent evidence-based determinations of effective strategies for teaching medical students about disability. The findings highlight ways to improve future studies in this domain.