Sources of Women's Health Information: A Qualitative Study

Equipping individuals with adequate knowledge on health can lead to optimal health outcomes. Scientific reports indicate client's challenges in trusting and accessing formal health information sources. This study was designed to determine the sources of Iranian women's health information. Study samples were selected through purposive sampling and with regarding to the inclusion criteria. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 17 women and using documentation and field notes until data saturation. Data were analyzed continuously and simultaneous with data collection using qualitative content analysis. The 5 central themes of health care professionals, social networks (with 2 sub-categories of peers and social interactions), culture and religion (with 3 sub-categories of religious teachings, traditional medicine information, and experiences of elders and seniors), mass media (with 3 sub-categories of electronic media, print media, and internet), and self-referencing (with 2 sub-categories of self-discovery-intuition and prior experiences) emerged from data analysis. These findings highlighted the need for respecting the cultural and religious beliefs of a community, and also emphasized on client's seeking rights, information needs, and empowerment in employment of formal and informal sources.