Council community directories as a source of information about local health services in rural Australia

Abstract

Despite the existence of web based community directories information about local health services in rural Queensland is reported by service providers to be poor. A survey in four towns determined directory community use for health information. Although 60% of town residents use the internet, only 20% were aware of the existence of their town’s community directory and less than 10% used it for health service information. Existing directories are neither user friendly nor comprehensive in content. For web-based directories to become valuable sources of information about local health services strategies are needed to improve access, content and awareness.