Abstract:
According to Akakandalwa (2017), little if any is known if students access health information on
social media in Zambia. The lack of awareness of information needs among students and the
inability to recognize and adequately express information needs are serious barriers to accessing
health information on social media. In addition, Dilipkumar (2017) states that there is limited
understanding among students on social media platforms which would provide them with
relevant and accurate health information that can allow them make informed decisions about
their health. In response to the stated problems, this study endeavoured to investigate the use of
social media for accessing Health Information among the University of Zambia Library and
Information Science final year students. The general objective of the study was to investigate the
use of social media for accessing Health Information among UNZA Library and Information
Science final year students. This study used a mixed method research design which was
conducted on a sample of 120 LIS final year students from a population of approximately 146
students from the LIS department. The sample size was chosen using a simple random sampling
technique that gives an equal chance to every individual to participate in the research. The tool
that was used to collect primary data from the sample was a questionnaire and data analysis was
done using the SPSS software and content analysis. The study outcome revealed that students
use various social media platforms to access health information, such as Facebook, YouTube,
Twitter as well as Instagram. It was also noticed that Facebook is the commonly used social
media platform to access health information by students followed by YouTube and stated that
these two platforms were the most easiest to use. Further, the findings showed that the biggest
factor that influences students search for health information on social media was the cost of
internet bundles, among others. The study also revealed that Facebook is considered the platform
that provides the most relevant health information with LIS final year students on campus, and
that more females use health information accessed for prevention purposes than their
counterparts do. The findings further showed that majority of students from the LIS department
face challenges when accessing health information such as poor internet connectivity, lack of
gadgets, information explosion etc. However, the most occurring challenge that students face
was poor internet connectivity. This means students face challenges such as poor internet
connectivity, lack of gadgets and information explosion when accessing health information on
social media.
