Use of the internet by legal guardians of patients from public and private pediatric urology health services in Brazil

Objective: To describe the internet access characteristics of parents of patients in both public (PubHS) and private (PrivHS) pediatric urology health services. Materials and methods: Question sheets (200) were supplied to the legal guardians (LG) of patients seen in the PubHS (100) and a PrivHS (100) which have different socio-economic perspectives. LG were questioned on whether they sought on the web information about the urologic problem of their child, the kind of information sought, and whether it affected communication and the overall relationship with their physicians. Results: LG from the PubHS had less access to the internet than those from the PrivHS (51% vs 81%, P < 0.001). Overall, 44 LG (with no significant difference between PubHS and PrivHS) reported that they sought on the web information about their child's urologic disease. Out of these, 28 considered that communication with their doctor improved. There were no statistically significant differences between the PubHS and PrivHS regarding peace of mind and confidence in treatment after internet consultation. Conclusion: The internet is utilized by LG of patients in both the PubHS and PrivHS. Of the 44% who sought information on the web about their child's urologic disease, 64% considered that communication with the doctor improved. (C) 2009 Journal of Pediatric Urology Company. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.