Relationship Between Rate of Access to Resources and Guidelines of Health Information and Quality of Life in Women Referring to Hospitals in Qom in 2016

 In Iran, few studies have been conducted on health information sources. The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between rate of access to resources and guidelines of health information and quality of life in women referring to hospitals in Qom city in 2016.

 This cross-sectional descriptive-analytical study was performed on 254 women referring to hospitals in the city of Qom in 2016. The subjects were selected via multi-stage sampling method. Data were collected by a researcher-made questionnaire on sources and guidelines of health information and the valid Quality of Life Questionnaire. The collected data were entered into SPSS V.20 software and were analyzed using Chi-square, ANOVA, and Pearson correlation coefficient tests.

 There was a significant negative correlation between the quality of life score and the use of the resources and guidelines of health information (r=-0.14, p=0.02), as with increasing the use of the resources and guidelines of health information, the score of quality of life of the subjects reduced. In addition, there was a significant relationship between educational level and type of the resources and guidelines of health information (p<0.02) so that, the people with university education were more likely to use more self-resources and mass media to obtain health information.

 Given the significant relationship between quality of life and the use of the resources and guidelines of health information, people should be properly informed about and familiarized with the reliable sources and guidelines of health information that are suitable for their conditions and levels of literacy.