Teaching high school students to use online consumer health resources on mobile phones: outcome of a pilot project in Oyo State, Nigeria (original) (raw)
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2021
1 University of Cape Coast1; Correspondence: kwaku.barfi@ucc.edu.gh, (+233262282138) 2 University of Cape Coast 2; cbuxton@ucc.edu.gh 3 University of Cape Coast 3; rosemary.twum@ucc.edu.gh 4 University of Cape Coast 4; daniel.ainooson-noonoo@ucc.edu.gh Abstract: Students are regarded as frequent users of mobile phones which has proven to be a convenient and acceptable method to promote healthy lifestyle. Students usually engage in relatively high levels of risky behavior and make unhealthy lifestyle choices, a study that investigates how health students access health information is necessary. The study adopted a descriptive cross-sectional study which was undertaken among third-year nursing students from three nurses training institutions in Ghana. A total of 270 students participated in the study. Most of the respondents who were currently subscribers of the health messages reported that they usually received health information on reproductive health issues, nutrition, and practici...
Library Philosophy and Practice, 2015
IntroductionIt is recognised that young people experience difficulties in accessing mainstream health services, particularly because of the stigma associated with certain health conditions like mental health, early pregnancy and Hormone Infection Virus/Acquired Immunisation Deficiency Syndrome (HIV/AIDS) (Horgan and Sweeney, 2010). Potential solution is to use media resources offering information and support for health problems. Young adults' access to health information is a function of their ability to search for and find answers to their health related questions. Media resources like television (TV), radio, newspapers, magazines, video, electronic readers and Internet can be valuable sources of health information that can help youth understand their health issues.Information is the first step to every healthy choice. This requires full access to information about the human body, their workings in health and illness, and the services available in treatment and care, support an...
2014
The use of wireless, mobile, and handheld digital devices is growing in every sector, including education and health. The increase in mobile (handheld) phone usage has gradually drawn most healthcare practitioners' and patients' attention to its capability as a promoter of health education. It has helped with reduction in social and economic impact of preventive and curative and unexplained non-curable illnesses, especially among rural communities in sub-Saharan African countries such as Ghana. Activity theory-an object-driven activity-was employed as the conceptual framework to answer the following research questions: What views do people have about information that relates to their health? What are the existing media used for obtaining information related to their health? What are the types of health-related activities that people perform on and with their mobile phones? What are the factors that influence employing a mobile phone in activities related to their health? And, what are some of the impacts of employing the device for activities related to their health in remote and isolated communities in sub-Saharan Africa? To help find responses to these questions, the study utilizes sequential mixed-methods approaches to sample 92 participants' views about the role and potential of mobile phones to promote health literacy and access to information about health in order to improve the healthcare delivery system among people living in rural communities. Findings from the study show that health-related activities performed on and with mobile phones include: (i) inquiring about health concerns from friends, family, or healthcare personnel; (ii) practising teleconsultation, and telehealth with health helplines that address specific health issues such as pregnancy and cholera outbreak; (iii) clarifying any health symptom before travelling to healthcare centres; and (iv) scrutinizing counterfeit medications entering the country. Implementation of mobile phones in mobile health (mHealth) is revealed to be influenced by demographic and socioeconomic status, as well as cultural practices and traditional beliefs in accessing and seeking medical assistance. Findings from this research add to literature on ways of addressing health inequities in remote communities through conducting capacity-building projects. Also, the findings contribute to educators' understanding in identifying various forms of learning, seeking information, and pedagogies for which activity theory is particularly appropriate. Further, the results assist development agencies and policy-makers' understanding on ways of promoting adult education and means of addressing issues related to patients' privacy and confidentiality.
The role and impact of health literacy on peer-to-peer health communication
Information Services & Use
This chapter explores the impact and role of health literacy in peer-to-peer health communication contexts, such as social media platforms and online patient support groups. The chapter contends that health literacy efforts of researchers, health care providers, and public health practitioners will need to include innovative strategies to help consumers critically evaluate and appropriately utilize the health information found in online communities. The chapter first discusses the rise of peer-to-peer sharing of health information and accompanying health literacy concerns. Next, a series of case studies are presented that illustrate the potential role of health literacy in three different online settings: clinical trial patient support networks, social media channels, and personal blogs. The chapter then explores common themes highlighted in these examples and discusses the range of health literacy benefits and pitfalls that accompany the use of these channels for health information. Finally, the chapter explores existing individual-level and system-level health literacy initiatives for peer-to-peer health communication and suggests opportunities for future work in this area. Such efforts to address and improve health literacy can help individuals and communities successfully navigate online platforms where peer-to-peer health information is exchanged.
Interventions for enhancing consumers' online health literacy
Background Access to health information is critical to enable consumers to participate in decisions on health. Increasingly, such information is accessed via the internet, but a number of barriers prevent consumers making effective use of it. These barriers include inadequate skills to search, evaluate and use the information. It has not yet been demonstrated whether training consumers to use the internet for health information can result in positive health outcomes. Objectives To assess the effects of interventions for enhancing consumers’ online health literacy (skills to search, evaluate and use online health information). Search methods We searched: the Cochrane Consumers and Communication Review Group Specialised Register; Cochrane Central Register of Con- trolled Trials (CENTRAL, The Cochrane Library, Issue 1 2008); MEDLINE (Ovid); EMBASE (Ovid); CINAHL (Dialog); ERIC (CSA Illumina); LISA (CSA Illumina); PsycINFO (Ovid); Index to scientific and technical proceedings; SIGLE; ASLIB Index to Theses; ProQuest Dissertation Abstracts; National Research Register/UK CRN Portfolio database; Current Controlled Trials - MetaRegister of Controlled Trials. We searched all databases for the period January 1990 to March 2008. Selection criteria Randomised controlled trials (RCTs), cluster RCTs and associated economic evaluations, quasi-RCTs, interrupted time series analyses, and controlled before and after (CBA) studies assessing interventions to enhance consumers’ online health literacy, in any language. Data collection and analysis Two review authors independently selected studies for inclusion, assessed their quality and extracted data. We contacted study authors for clarification and to seek missing data. We presented results as a narrative and tabular summary, and calculated mean differences where appropriate. Main results We included two studies: one randomised controlled trial (RCT) and one controlled before and after (CBA) study with a combined total of 470 participants. The RCT compared internet health information classes with patient education classes for participants with HIV infection. Only the RCT, which we rated as having a moderate risk of bias, reported statistically significant positive effects for primary outcomes related to online health literacy in the intervention group, for the following outcomes: ’Self-efficacy for health information seeking’, ’health information evaluation skills’ and the ’number of times the patient discussed online information with a health provider’. The CBA, which we rated as having a high risk of bias, compared internet health information classes with a control group receiving no intervention among healthy adults aged 50+. It showed significant positive changes only in a secondary (behavioural) outcome in the intervention group, regarding the readiness to adopt the internet as a tool for preventive health information. No adverse effects were reported.There is low quality evidence that such interventions may improve some outcomes relevant to online health literacy in certain populations. Authors’ conclusions Due to the small number of studies and their variable methodological quality, the evidence is too weak to draw any conclusions about implications for the design and delivery of interventions for online health literacy. There is a need for well-designed RCTs to investigate the effects of such interventions. These should involve different participants (in terms of disease status, age, socio-economic group and gender) to analyse the extent to which online health literacy reduces a barrier to using the internet for health information. Trials should be conducted in different settings and should examine interventions to enhance consumers’ online health literacy (search, appraisal and use of online health information) like internet training courses, measuring outcomes up to at least one year after the intervention to estimate the sustainability of the intervention effects.
2018
Education is an accumulated experience that helps to shape human character and mind. Health education in schools is a necessity designed to develop optimum physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, and social health among students. Unfortunately, recent studies show that secondary school students are nowadays reckless and less conscious on issues concerning their health. Students’ unrestricted freedom and exposure to modern technologies such as television, computer games, video games, mobile phones, internet, access to fast foods rich in saturated fats, and driving them to school as opposed to walking or cycling is also not helping matters. The resultant effects are increased number of teenage pregnancies, obesity, HIV/ AIDS, communicable diseases and other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). The study adopted the Survey Research design with structured questionnaire as an instrument for data collection. A total of 500 students participated in the study and data were analyzed using t...
Education is an accumulated experience that helps to shape human character and mind. Health education in schools is a necessity designed to develop optimum physical, mental, emotional, spiritual and social health among students. Unfortunately, recent studies show that secondary school students are nowadays reckless and less conscious on issues concerning their health. Students' unrestricted freedom and exposure to modern technologies such as: television, computer games, video games, mobile phones, Internet, access to fast foods rich in saturated fats, and driving them to school as opposed to walking or cycling is also not helping matters. The resultant effects are increased number of teenage pregnancies, obesity, HIV/AIDS, communicable diseases and other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). The study adopted the Survey Research design with structured questionnaire as an instrument for data collection. A total of 500 students participated in the study and data were analysed using the Pearson Product Moment Correlation Coefficient (r). Findings revealed that there is significant relationship between health knowledge and health education amongst senior secondary school students in Cross River State. This implies that the introduction and implementation of health education programmes secondary schools have contributed immensely to the students' increased knowledge about health related issues, which is a vehicle for proper healthy living needed for societal development.
2020
This study focused on e-health literacy and availability of Internet wellness information on fast food among adolescents. The avalanche of data on the Internet indicates that adolescents are likely to be influenced by online information on fast food. This study examined how exposure to online information induces dietary behaviour change among adolescents of Awka South, Anambra State. The study examined two theories: Health Belief Model that explains health behaviour and possible reasons for non-compliance with recommended health actions, and uses-and-gratifications approach which examines why and how people actively seek out particular media to satisfy specific needs. The study adopted a survey of 400 respondents using Cochran sample determination technique. The questionnaire was the instrument for data collection. Findings of the study showed that online wellness information induces dietary behaviour change and increased exposure to negative information about a product reduces the ...
Réseau Africain de l’Éducation pour la Santé (RAES) developed and implemented a health communications pilot project targeting secondary school students throughout Dakar, Senegal, in the summer of 2008. The program focused on the development of a scholastic, Internet-based community dedicated to health information, education, and dissemination, created by and for Senegalese youth. This article focuses on the summer pilot aspect of this program. Forty five students from three local high schools in Dakar were recruited during their summer break to participate in a 10-week pilot project conducted at RAES. This summer project developed students’ communication and technical skills; youth leaders formulated health messages communicating HIV/AIDS issues to their peers by producing their own digital content. Youth designed, wrote, and produced content using web-based applications, audio/visual equipment, and traditional journalistic approaches. The program was designed to positively impact h...