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Abstract
Background
Persons with multiple sclerosis (MS) are confronted by an overwhelming amount of online health information, which can be valuable but also vary in quality and aim. Therefore, it is of great importance for developers and providers of eHealth information to understand its impact on the users. The eHealth Impact Questionnaire (eHIQ) has been developed in the United Kingdom to measure the potential effects of health and experimental information websites. This contains user’s general attitudes towards using the internet to gain health information and attitudes towards a specific health related website. The self-complete questionnaire is divided into two independently administered and scored parts: the 11-item eHIQ part 1 and the 26-item eHIQ part 2. This study aimed to validate the psychometric properties of the German version of the eHealth Impact Questionnaire (eHIQ-G).
Methods
162 people with multiple sclerosis browsed one of two possible websites containing information on MS and completed an online survey. Internal consistency was assessed by Cronbach’s alpha and structural validity by Confirmatory Factor Analysis. Construct validity was examined by assessing correlations with the reference instruments eHealth Literacy Questionnaire and the General Self-Efficacy Scale measuring related, but dissimilar constructs. Moreover, we investigated the mean difference of the eHIQ-G score between the two websites. Data were analyzed using SPSS and AMOS software.
Results
The eHIQ-G subscales showed high internal consistency with Cronbach’s alpha from 0.833 to 0.885. The 2-factor model of eHIQ part 1 achieved acceptable levels of goodness-of-fit indices, whereas the fit for the 3-factor model of eHIQ part 2 was poor and likewise for the alternative modified models. The correlations with the reference instruments were 0.08–0.62 and as expected. Older age was related with lower eHIQ part 1 score, whereas no significant effect was found for education on eHIQ part 1. Although not significant, the website ‘AMSEL’ reached higher mean scores on eHIQ part 2.
Conclusions
The eHIQ-G has good internal consistency, and sufficient structural and construct validity. This instrument will facilitate the measurement of the potential impact of eHealth tools.
Abstract
Background
When seeking advice on allergy prevention in early childhood (Early Childhood Allergy Prevention, ECAP), parents often turn to health and social care providers, such as paediatricians, midwives, and family centres. However, these actors fulfil various, often care-related, roles, and cannot be considered ‘health information providers’ by default. In addition, although the scientific evidence for ECAP is often known by health professionals, it is not actively communicated. In this study protocol, we describe the planned procedure for the development and implementation of a process to communicate ECAP information to parents, with a focus on reaching out to those from migrant communities. Thereby, we also aim to contribute to the understanding of how to design more robust approaches to deliver health information.
Methods
We have chosen the Implementation Research Logic Model as our framework for a multi-stage process. Firstly, we will map regional and local health and social care providers to find potential providers of ECAP information. We will then approach actors from each mapping category for qualitative interviews to assess facilitators and barriers to implementation. Next, we will define actions to ease the implementation process, develop exemplary ECAP information materials for parents, and deliver these to pre-selected health and social care individuals and organizations. Each step will be adapted to meet the needs and preferences of culturally and linguistically diverse populations. Finally, the process will be evaluated for key implementation outcomes (e.g., acceptability, feasibility, effectiveness) by interviewing information providers and surveying information recipients.
Discussion
From a Public Health perspective, studies seem warranted that investigate how evidence from health research may be effectively communicated to the public, rather than merely focusing on, e.g., intervention development. Also, it has often been highlighted that the dissemination of health information needs to better target those who face the greatest difficulties when seeking advice, i.e. individuals/parents who recently migrated. ECAP is a good use case, as scientific evidence is constantly evolving, and the communication of information is hampered by low awareness of high quality sources.