Usage of eHealth/mHealth Services among Young Czech Adults and the Impact of COVID-19: An Explorative Survey.

Michal Dolezel,Zdenek Smutny

doi:10.3390/ijerph18137147

Abstract

Various mHealth/eHealth services play an increasingly important role in healthcare systems and personal lifestyle management. Yet, the relative popularity of these services among the young population of the Czech Republic was not known. Therefore, we carried out an on-line survey with a convenience sample (n = 299) of young adults aged 18–29 and living in the Czech Republic. To this end, we adapted the survey instrument which was previously used in a similar study conducted in a different cultural context (Hong Kong). In our study, we found out that health tutorial activities (i.e., acquiring information on diet, exercise, fitness) were the most common among our respondents (M = 2.81, SD = 1.14). These were followed by health information seeking activities (i.e., acquiring information on medical problems) (M = 2.63, SD = 0.89) and medical services (i.e., the eHealth/mHealth services that provide infrastructural support, such as ePrescription and doctor appointment organizers) (M = 2.18, SD = 0.97). Based on the grouping according to gender and existing health condition, pairwise comparisons showed statistically significant differences. We also briefly analyzed the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on the examined activities. Based on their relative popularity, we suggest leveraging the potential of health tutorial activities to improve public health.

Highlights

Nowadays, individuals with a non-medical background increasingly rely on technology when they interact with existing health systems or independently consume healthrelated knowledge
Being a component of eHealth, mHealth can in turn be defined as “medical and public health practice supported by mobile devices” [2]
Results (SD) for all respondents, and they are stratified into the four subgroups

Summary

Introduction

Individuals with a non-medical background increasingly rely on technology when they interact with existing health systems or independently consume healthrelated knowledge. In doing so, this group frequently benefits from various eHealth and mHealth services. This group frequently benefits from various eHealth and mHealth services The former term “refers to tools and services that use information and communication technologies (ICTs) to improve prevention, diagnosis, treatment, monitoring and management of health and lifestyle” [1]. From a policy-based perspective, eHealth and mHealth technologies can be divided into four broad categories [4]. These are: (i) system services with a supporting role;

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Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion