Open AccessBehavioral Interventions Using Consumer Information Technology as Tools to Advance Health Equity
Author(s) -
Suzanne Bakken,
Sue Marden,
S. Sonia Arteaga,
Lisa V. Grossman,
Alla Keselman,
PhuongTu Le,
Ruth Masterson Creber,
Tiffany M. PowellWiley,
Rebecca Schnall,
Derrick C. Tabor,
Rina Das,
Tilda Farhat
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
american journal of public health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.284
H-Index - 264
eISSN - 1541-0048
pISSN - 0090-0036
DOI - 10.2105/ajph.2018.304646
Subject(s) - psychological intervention , telehealth , mhealth , context (archaeology) , health equity , equity (law) , digital divide , internet privacy , telemedicine , medicine , public relations , psychology , health care , public health , the internet , computer science , nursing , political science , world wide web , paleontology , law , biology
The digital divide related to consumer information technologies (CITs) has diminished, thus increasing the potential to use CITs to overcome barriers of access to health interventions as well as to deliver interventions situated in the context of daily lives. However, the evidence base regarding the use and impact of CIT-enabled interventions in health disparity populations lags behind that for the general population. Literature and case examples are summarized to demonstrate the use of mHealth, telehealth, and social media as behavioral intervention platforms in health disparity populations, identify challenges to achieving their use, describe strategies for overcoming the challenges, and recommend future directions. The evidence base is emerging. However, challenges in design, implementation, and evaluation must be addressed for the promise to be fulfilled. Future directions include (1) improved design methods, (2) enhanced research reporting, (3) advancement of multilevel interventions, (4) rigorous evaluation, (5) efforts to address privacy concerns, and (6) inclusive design and implementation decisions.