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Design of user friendly health systems

Content
Transcript

Intro:

A digital health platform has so many opportunities to actually bring health to people.

 

Why is digital health literacy becoming increasingly important?

Health literacy is two-sided. On one hand we talk about the health literacy of the public, of people. The other side is about the health literacy responsiveness of systems. So how do we design systems to be health literacy friendly? And when we talk about digital health literacy, we are challenged. Because we see that there are so many barriers for people to find information on social media, on websites and so forth. Many public websites are not designed very user friendly. And it means that people can get lost. It’s important that we recognize that healthcare systems have a say in how we design systems and the way we can help people to gain digital health literacy.

 

How can health literacy be promoted?

Healthcare systems play an important role in increasing health literacy of people. It’s important to create a leadership, ownership, management buy-in to implement health literacy as a strategic approach in organisations. Healthcare systems are also important in terms of setting guidelines and standards for use of data, for example. So it’s important to create a good framework for privacy and data security.

 

How can we create a health literate future?

I believe the future is health literate. I believe we all have a responsibility to design healthcare systems that are conducive and empower people to take care of their health and well-being. It’s a responsibility of all of us, whether you work in the healthcare sector or beyond the healthcare sector. So it means for the healthcare staff, but also those outside, so meaning teachers, coaches, decision makers, policy makers, journalists: We all have a responsibility and we can all make that difference of making the future health literate.

Content

Dr. Kristine Sørensen, President of the International Health Literacy Association, advocates for more people to gain better digital health literacy. To achieve this, she believes that health systems have a responsibility to become more user-friendly. In this video, the health literacy expert outlines the framework for health systems that aim to empower people to take responsibility for their health and well-being.

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    Creating resilience against desinformation

    Content
    Transcript

    Intro:

    We need to be much more critical about what we read and hear in the news and on social media.

     

    What is health literacy?

    Health literacy is a rather new term in the health field. It entails the knowledge and motivation and competencies to find and understand and judge and use information to take decisions in everyday life. So when we are ill, when we are talking about risk factors like tobacco or smoking, when we are trying to stay healthy. But it’s also about how to navigate the healthcare system.

     

    Why is health literacy so important?

    Health literacy is important because those that have the knowledge and motivation and competencies to take care of themselves, they also do well, live better lives, use healthcare systems less. And when we have the skills with regard to health literacy, we are also empowered and we are able to trust ourselves when we deal with information and distinguishing whether this is now true or whether it’s fake news. So in the opposite, if you’re less skilled, it might be difficult and too complex to manage your health and navigate and find your way in the healthcare system. And that can have a detrimental impact. You go often to the hospital, you’re not joining screening systems, you may not know how to eat well.

     

    What does research say about health literacy?

    We know from European health literacy surveys that on average one in two face difficulties in terms of finding and understanding and using information to take action. It means that it’s not only a small proportion of people that are having difficulties, it’s actually a public health challenge that we need to tackle.

     

    Why do so many people struggle with health information?

    During the pandemic we saw how difficult it was for people to deal with health information. We need to be much more critical about what we read and hear in the news and on social media. We know that we are also faced with myths, conspiracies and people need to be able to understand what is fake news. However, we are also very challenged because sometimes fake news comes also from people we actually trust. And this is a challenging time when health is dealt with all over in the news and in social media.

     

    How can we tackle this problem?

    We can teach health literacy and digital health literacy in schools. We can ask journalists to have a more prominent role in how health is being presented in news. We can ask leadership in companies, in public and private sectors to deal with health literacy at work, because health literacy is relevant for all of us. And we need to make sure that we have access to credible information and timely information and relevant information. And a way to do that can be to establish a health data platform. So a digital health platform has so many opportunities to actually bring health to people.

    Content

    Those who want to inform themselves about health topics often feel lost in the jungle of information. According to surveys, many people do not have the necessary health literacy to distinguish fake news from trustworthy information. In this video, Dr. Kristine Sørensen, President of the International Health Literacy Association, explains why health literacy is important and how a national health platform can contribute to improving health literacy.

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    Ecosystem design: Benefits for all

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    Health literacy and infodemics

    Making healthy decisions requires access to accurate information. Health literacy involves a range of skills that enable us to effectively navigate this information in our daily lives. In an era where information is abundant, and digital platforms offer seemingly unlimited access to knowledge, many people find it challenging to sift through the overwhelming volume of information they are confronted with.

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    Your feedback is important to us

    To contact our project team, please use our form. We look forward to your message and will get back to you as soon as possible.


      National health platform: The state as a provider of information

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      Transcript

      Intro

      If we view the national health platform as a central node of a network that involves government actors, it must adhere to the legal criteria governing state bodies.

      What constitutes government public service messaging, and how does it relate to the concept of a national health platform?

      Essentially any form of activity by which the state communicates information to the public can be regarded as a form of government public service messaging. This can include, for example, providing informing about specific topics such as certain medical conditions or endorsing behaviors like walking 10,000 steps a day. It also involves issuing warnings about certain products, like the use of specific medical devices. And it doesn’t necessarily matter which government agency is the source of this information. It could come from a federal ministry, a state or regional parliament, or a local government agency.

      Why is government public service messaging subject to specific legal requirements?

      The state’s activity in terms of providing information to the public is subject to distinct legal requirements because government entities typically have access to significantly different kinds of resources for their informational activities compared to privately owned businesses. Government agencies usually attract a great deal of public attention when issuing information and enjoy a certain degree of authority and trust, particularly among patients.

      This means that when, for instance, a federal ministry issues a warning about the use of a specific medical device, this effectively functions as a ban on that product. Citizens are much less likely to purchase the device if the government has officially cautioned against it. In practical terms, government public service messaging can significantly influence market dynamics. It can, for example, impact other providers of digital healthcare services’ fundamental right to occupational freedom.

      What guidance can be extrapolated from this for the governance of a national platform?

      If government actors are to participate in the national health platform, the platform will need to comply with the typically stringent legal requirements that are applicable to state entities. As a rule, this will involve establishing a legal framework. Even if product warnings are not the main focus of the project, the fundamental rights of providers of digital healthcare services could plausibly be affected by such an undertaking.

      This suggests that the national health platform should be run by a non-governmental organization such as a civil society organization that enjoys more flexibility. And this wouldn’t need to rule out public funds as a source of financing, as public financing doesn’t necessaeily dictate that the chosen governance or ownership model be based in public law.

      Disclaimer

      The statements made in this interview are relevant exclusively to the German legal context. They offer a framework for guidance and should not be interpreted as providing legal counsel beyond the scope of the Trusted Health Ecosystems project.

      Content

      Expert

      While completing her doctoral studies, Prof. Dr. Laura Schulte gained experience in the field of constitutional law as a research assistant. Her doctoral thesis focused on data protection law, and she conducted further research on this subject at various institutions, including the Queen Mary School of Law in London. From 2020 to 2023, she was employed as an attorney at BRANDI Rechtsanwälte in Bielefeld, specializing in IT and data protection law. Since August 2023, she has held the position of professor of business law at the Hochschule Bielefeld.

      Your feedback is important to us

      To contact our project team, please use our form. We look forward to your message and will get back to you as soon as possible.


        National health platform: Editorial content creation

        Content
        Transcript

        Intro

        The national health platform’s purpose should be to enhance, not replace, existing information services.

        Who bears responsibility for the content on a national healthcare platform?

        When it comes to the question of who bears responsibility for the content provided on a national health platform, it comes down to the nature of the content in question. The platform operator is initially accountable for their own content. However, if the platform operator assumes responsibility for third-party content –  by evaluating it before making it public or by expressing a willingness to take on such responsibility – then the platform operator may be held accountable.

        If an entity other than the platform operator assumes responsibility for assessing content before it is published, this might require a different legal assessment. In such cases, it’s possible that the platform operator could be held liable or share the responsibility for external content. This means that the platform operator must establish a mechanism for users to report false or unlawful information.

        How should the creation of original content be assessed from a competition law perspective?

        Evaluating the creation of original content for a national health platform in terms of competition law is complex, especially when government actors are involved. In principle, government initiatives should only be introduced when a form of market failure is evident. This means either insufficient information is being communicated or information in the healthcare sector is not being adequately transparent.

        Past experience has shown that digital healthcare service providers are quite capable of meeting this demand. The national health platform’s purpose should be to enhance, not replace, existing information services. This should benefit not only users but also providers of digital information services in the health sector.

        What insights can we gain from this for the platform’s content strategy?

        When it comes to shaping the national health platform’s content strategy, it’s important to bear in mind that creating or asserting ownership of content and disseminating it can be, in terms of competition law, challenging to justify, especially when government bodies are involved in the project. In this context, it seems preferable to prioritize the distribution of third-party content, meaning content generated by civil society or private-sector organizations. The providers of such information should be given fair and transparent access to the platform.

        Disclaimer

        The statements made in this interview are relevant exclusively to the German legal context. They offer a framework for guidance and should not be interpreted as providing legal counsel beyond the scope of the Trusted Health Ecosystems project.

        Content

        Expert

        While completing her doctoral studies, Prof. Dr. Laura Schulte gained experience in the field of constitutional law as a research assistant. Her doctoral thesis focused on data protection law, and she conducted further research on this subject at various institutions, including the Queen Mary School of Law in London. From 2020 to 2023, she was employed as an attorney at BRANDI Rechtsanwälte in Bielefeld, specializing in IT and data protection law. Since August 2023, she has held the position of professor of business law at the Hochschule Bielefeld.

        Your feedback is important to us

        To contact our project team, please use our form. We look forward to your message and will get back to you as soon as possible.