PERCEIVED USEFULNESS AND UTILIZATION OF SEARCH ENGINES IN ACCESSING CURRENT INFORMATION ON COVID-19 PANDEMIC BY MEDICAL PRACTITIONER IN MAIDUGURI METROPOLITAN, BORNO STATE

This study investigates the perceived usefulness and utilization of search engines as a smart library tool by medical practitioners in Maiduguri metropolitan, Borno State, during the COVID-19 outbreak, which led to cautious patient care and increased mortality. A survey research design was employed, guided by two hypotheses. Data were collected from 420 medical staff using a self-developed structured questionnaire distributed via Google Form and WhatsApp groups. Descriptive statistics (frequency count, percentage, mean, and standard deviation) and inferential statistics (Chi-square and correlation analysis) were used for analysis. Results show a significant correlation between perceived usefulness and utilization of search engines (r = .304, p = 0.001 < 0.05), with perceived usefulness (χ²_cal = 103.010 > χ²_tab = 3.84) and utilization (χ²_cal = 333.038 > χ²_tab = 3.84) being statistically significant for accessing COVID-19 information. The study recommends that Nigerian library stakeholders and administrators pool financial and human resources to develop a Dynamic Online Crisis Tracking Application (DOCTA), either as an Android app or web-based platform, to combat misinformation and reduce reliance on public search engines for accurate, reliable, and current crisis-related information.