A model of digital health communication media use during the Covid-19 pandemic

The effect of Augmented-Reality media-based health education on healthy lifestyle knowledge, attitude, and healthy lifestyle behaviors among pregnant women during COVID-19 pandemic in Jakarta, Indonesia

Pregnancy is a critical period. Pregnant women need to perform healthy lifestyle behavior in order to ensure good fetal development. During COVID-19 pandemic, Augmented-Reality (AR) media may be used in pregnant women health education. However, there is a lack of research that investigated the effect of AR media use in pregnant women health education. Therefore, this research aimed to investigate the impact of AR media use on healthy lifestyle knowledge, attitude, and behaviors among pregnant women during COVID-19 pandemic. This cohort-longitudinal study involved 86 pregnant women aged 18-45 years. The subjects who participated in this research received health education interventions using AR media for 5 months. The data collection was performed at the pre-post-intervention through a survey with questionnaire. Changes in subjects' healthy lifestyle knowledge, attitude, and behaviors were analyzed by using t-test. The research results show that the AR media use in health education significantly improved the subjects' scores for healthy lifestyle knowledge (5.0 ± 10.9; p < .05) and behaviors (9.7 ± 17.5; p < .05). However, the subject score for attitude was not significantly improved (0.3 ± 7.1; p ≥ .05). This research results provide evidence of the importance of using AR media in health education for pregnant women during COVID-19 pandemic.

The role of e-health literacy and some cognitive factors in adopting protective behaviors of COVID-19 in Khalkhal residents

Background

Several vaccines have recently been generated and are being utilized to prevent COVID-19 mortality. Although the disease is causing many fatalities worldwide, preventative practices should be prioritized, even if vaccines are available. Therefore, this study aimed to identify the role of e-health literacy and some cognitive factors in adopting protective behaviors against COVID-19 in Khalkhal residents.

Methods

In the present cross-sectional study we recruited 380 people aged 18–65 according to cluster sampling from September 2021 to December 2021 in Khalkhal County, Iran. Reliable and validated tools were applied to data collection, including the eHealth Literacy Scale (eHEALS) in Persian and the Cognitive factors assessment questionnaire based on the Health Belief Model (HBM). Data were analyzed using Chi-square, one-way ANOVA, independent samples t-test, and bivariate correlation. The predictors were also determined using hierarchical linear regression analysis.

Results

The average age of the participants was 35.26 ± 11.51 years. The regression analysis implied that gender (p-value = 0.032), education level (p-value = 0.001), occupational status (p-value = 0.002), income (p-value = 0.001), and marriage (p-value = 0.001) had statistically significant associations with e-HL. Additionally, education level (p-value = 0.001), occupational status (p-value = 0.001), income (p-value = 0.001), and marriage (p-value = 0.002) revealed statistically significant associations with COVID-19 preventive behaviors. Approximately 16.5% of the variation in the COVID-19 protective behaviors is explained by the cognitive factors and the demographic variables. Overall, demographic, cognitive, and e-HL variables were able to explain roughly 35.5% of the variation in COVID-19 protective behaviors. Furthermore, self-efficacy was the strongest predictor of protective behaviors (β = 0.214).

Conclusions

HBM constructs successfully predicted the role of e-health literacy and some cognitive factors in adopting COVID-19 protective behaviors. People with high socioeconomic levels were better at e-health literacy and COVID-19 protective behaviors during the pandemic. Moreover, applying approaches to adopting COVID-19 protective behaviors is essential, especially in low socioeconomic status (SES) groups.

Role of factors in eHealth literacy in period of COVID-19: a study of Turkey

Purpose

This study aims to understand the eHealth literacy skills of chronic patients and to explore the relations, patterns between eHealth literacy skills and different factors such as demographics, search strategies and health information sources and to explain their effects on eHealth literacy in Turkey in Izmir in COVID-19 outbreak.

Design/methodology/approach

A quantitative method was used in the study including a questionnaire. A total of 604 chronic patients responded to the questionnaire who applied the five popularly identified hospitals in Izmir in Turkey. CHAID analysis method was implemented to explore the strongest correlation between eHealth literacy and independent variables.

Findings

Using different social media types were correlated with patients’ eHealth literacy scores. Using Facebook, Twitter were the supportive predictors for the eHealth literacy scores. However, digital literacy was highly important for eHealth literacy.

Originality/value

This study shows that the social media channels which provides much more information such as Facebook and Twitter for the chronic patient. This could be beneficial for the eHealth tools and social media content developers in terms of the supply of health information. Moreover, the study gives ideas about the effect of digital literacy and the importance of health information provided.