Making an appointment with a doctor? Looking at your medical records? More and more of us are finding we have to do this online. For many this is convenient, but not for everyone. In fact, a large group of Dutch people do not have access to the internet or cannot use a computer. So how do we make eHealth in the Netherlands inclusive for all?
Background
There is a global push towards using eHealth as a solution to the current gaps in our health care systems. eHealth is sold under the promise that it can deliver health care more effectively, more efficiently and to more people. However, these benefits are not always experienced by everyone and come with exclusionary effects that can, in some cases, increase health inequalities for certain groups. These groups - citizens with a low socioeconomic position, low (health) literacy, a disability or long-term health condition, the elderly, homeless, and migrants living in vulnerable circumstances - are also those who are typically the most difficult to reach if digital media become the main route of access to health information and services. With this 4-year research project 'Doing eHealth Right', we want to prevent existing health disparities from widening as a result of the digitisation of care. How do we ensure that care remains accessible and works for everyone? And especially for people with a large distance to the online world and a high disease burden?
Objectives & approach
Together with colleagues from the Amsterdam UMC, we focus in this project not on the (digital) skills of patients and caregivers, but rather on a system innovation. By working together with citizens, healthcare professionals, policy makers, insurers, tech companies and local organisations, we will discover what it takes to arrive at domain-transcending solutions. From a collective learning process, we can better understand the problem and create new opportunities. That is, to fundamentally change structures (policies, procedures and infrastructures), culture (how knowledge is built, what counts as successful innovation) and practices (co-creation of services and development of alternative solutions/pathways).
The main aim of our project is to increase the health potential of people with a low socioeconomic position and to prevent health inequalities from widening further, by addressing the growing digital gap regarding (e)Health services. Therefore, we strive to:
- Increase societal awareness of digital inequalities as a hidden form of social inequalities jeopardising health (at an individual level as well as on a societal level)
- Identify, develop and implement cross-domain courses of action that mitigate the impacts of digital inequalities
- Foster sustainable system learning and system change
Role of Athena
This is a joint project involving multiple stakeholders across various sectors of society. The Athena Institute will be involved throughout the project, specifically in the areas of transdisciplinary research, co-design of field labs and systems learning and implementation. This project will run from August 2022 to August 2026.