Abstract

The paper investigates the information needs and seeking behaviour of health workers in the rural areas in Benue state Nigeria. Three research questions guided the study. A descriptive survey design was adopted for the study. A total of four hundred and twenty-two (423) health workers with a sample of two hundred and six (206) health workers from general hospitals in 23 Local Governments Areas in Benue state was used for the study. The questionnaire was used as an instrument for data collection. Data collected was analyzed using descriptive statistics of mean and standard deviation. A mean score cut-off point of 2.50 was used to determine a positive response. The study's findings revealed that Information on health workers, information on improvement of knowledge in health workers, information on how to support lifelong learning, and information on occupational hazards, among others, are the type of information needs of health workers in rural areas in Benue State. The use of the Internet, medical journals, nursing colleagues, consulting of doctors’ colleagues, medical libraries, and electronic databases like Cenahlete, amongst others are the channels of information provision for health workers in rural areas in Benue State. Lack of internet access, inadequate training of medical practitioners in the use of information, lack of current resources in the medical libraries, inadequate research on user study to identify information needs of health practitioners, and inadequate training of library and information professionals, are the constraints affecting information needs and seeking behaviour of health workers in rural areas in Benue State. The study recommended that the Information needs of health workers should be addressed to enable them to have access to information that will aid them, Channels of meeting the information needs of health workers for the treatment of disease should be made available by the government, health care centers, privates and well-meaning individuals as well as adequately equip with information resources to increase rural health workers access to information for treatment patients in rural areas. The government through the Ministry of Health, health care centers, and other relevant stakeholders should address the various constraints affecting information needs of health workers for the patients in rural areas in Benue state.