Inclusiveness of e-health topic first physical Medical Delta Café in long time

E-health is becoming increasingly important in healthcare, both for prevention and treatment. But for many people it is difficult to access e-health, for example because they do not have the digital skills or have difficulty understanding the language. Can we ensure that e-health is not just for the benefit of the happy few, but is accessible to all? In other words: does e-health increase or reduce health inequalities?

This was the central question of the first physical Medical Delta Café in a long time. The sunny inner garden of BioPartner 5, a new and energy-neutral building at the Bio Science Park in Leiden, formed the backdrop. The Café, chaired by Medical Delta chairman Prof. Dr. Frank Willem Jansen, was also part of the Leiden European City of Science 2022 festival.

Inclusive design

People with a practical education, no job, few financial resources or low literacy often lag behind in the use of e-health. We can change this by changing the perspective when we design an app: not the technology or the medical science, but the end user should be central. This was stated by Dr Valentijn Visch (TU Delft), Scientific Leader at the Medical Delta eHealth & self-management for a healthy society programme in his presentation on accessible and inclusive design of e-health. "In order to put the end user's interests first, you could, for example, ensure that an app not only monitors for a long time but also has an immediate effect for the user," he said.

Educate care providers

Robert van Bokhoven, strategic advisor at Pharos, then shared his experiences with the development of health apps, such as the LUMC Care app. He explained that too little attention is paid to the comprehensibility and accessibility of e-health. Digital inclusion should be a priority when developing apps. Among other things, he argued for inclusion in medical training programmes. Not as a minor subject, but as an important component, so that doctors know how they can use e-health in the consulting room.

Create trust

Doctors often do not know what apps are available, while users are more likely to trust an app if their doctor recommends it. This was stated by Petra Hoogendoorn, lead expert in the development of ISO standards for health apps. She explained how she designs labels for the assessment of apps on the European market. She mentioned examples of e-health that reduce health differences, such as an app in which cancer patients could indicate how they were feeling. This was an accessible way of sharing data with care providers for people who could be hesitant to see a doctor straightaway.

Be mindful of the environment

Finally, Dr Sandra van Dijk, associate professor at Leiden University and scientific coordinator of the Healthy Society Hub, reflected on the presentations. She warned that e-health can indeed increase health inequalities if we do not pay attention to inclusiveness. In addition, she argued that e-health cannot stand alone, but must be part of a larger approach. For example, people with an unsafe housing situation or debts are not always able to work on their health if they do not also find solutions for other problems.

The Café closed with a discussion and drinks.