Assessing Electronic Health Literacy at an Urban Academic Hospital

Sarah Lane; Emma Fitzsimmons; Abraham Zelefksy; Jonathan Klein; Savneet Kaur; Shankar Viswanathan; Madhur Garg; Jonathan M. Feldman; Sunit P. Jariwala

doi:10.1055/a-2041-4500

Applied Clinical Informatics, Table of Contents

Appl Clin Inform 2023; 14(02): 365-373
DOI: 10.1055/a-2041-4500

Research Article

Assessing Electronic Health Literacy at an Urban Academic Hospital

Sarah Lane‡^*

¹Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York, United States

,

Emma Fitzsimmons‡^*

¹Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York, United States

,

Abraham Zelefksy‡^*

¹Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York, United States

,

Jonathan Klein

²Department of Radiation Oncology, Albert Einstein College of Medicine and Montefiore Medical Center, Bronx, New York, United States

,

Savneet Kaur

¹Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York, United States

,

Shankar Viswanathan

³Department of Epidemiology and Population Health, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York, United States

,

Madhur Garg

²Department of Radiation Oncology, Albert Einstein College of Medicine and Montefiore Medical Center, Bronx, New York, United States

,

Jonathan M. Feldman

⁴Ferkauf Graduate School of Psychology, Yeshiva University, Bronx, New York, United States

,

Sunit P. Jariwala

⁵Division of Allergy and Immunology, Department of Medicine, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York, United States

› Author Affiliations

Abstract

Background Residents of the Bronx suffer marked health disparities due to socioeconomic and other factors. The coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic worsened these health outcome disparities and health care access disparities, especially with the abrupt transition to online care.

Objectives This study classified electronic health literacy (EHL) among patients at an urban, academic hospital in the Bronx, and assessed for associations between EHL levels and various demographic characteristics.

Methods We designed a cross-sectional, observational study in adults 18 years or older presenting to the Montefiore Einstein Center for Cancer Care (MECCC) Department of Radiation Oncology or the Montefiore Department of Medicine in the Bronx. We assessed EHL using the eHealth Literacy Scale (eHEALS) survey, a previously validated tool, and our newly developed eHealth Literacy Objective Scale-Scenario Based (eHeLiOS-SB) tool.

Results A total of 97 patients recruited from the MECCC and Department of Medicine participated in this study. There was a statistically significant association between age and EHL as assessed by both eHEALS and eHeLiOS-SB, with older adults having lower EHL scores. Additionally, a question designed to assess general attitudes toward digital health technologies found that most participants had a positive attitude toward such applications.

Conclusion Many patients, especially older adults, may require additional support to effectively navigate telehealth. Further research is warranted to optimize telemedicine strategies in this potentially-marginalized population and ultimately to create telehealth practices accessible to patients of all ages and demographics.

Keywords

digital health literacy - electronic health literacy - eHEALS - eHeLiOS-SB

Full Text

References

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