Accessibility of eHealth Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic Among People With and People Without Impairment: Repeated Cross-Sectional Survey
Abstract BackgroundThe adoption of eHealth accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic. Inequalities in the adoption of eHealth during the COVID-19 pandemic have been reported, but there are few such studies among people with impairment. ObjectivesThis study aimed to...
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JMIR Publications
2025-03-01
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| Series: | JMIR Public Health and Surveillance |
| Online Access: | https://publichealth.jmir.org/2025/1/e64707 |
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| author | Linda Pettersson Stefan Johansson Ingrid Demmelmaier Lena von Koch Jan Gulliksen Per-Olof Hedvall Karl Gummesson Catharina Gustavsson |
| author_facet | Linda Pettersson Stefan Johansson Ingrid Demmelmaier Lena von Koch Jan Gulliksen Per-Olof Hedvall Karl Gummesson Catharina Gustavsson |
| author_sort | Linda Pettersson |
| collection | DOAJ |
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Abstract
BackgroundThe adoption of eHealth accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic. Inequalities in the adoption of eHealth during the COVID-19 pandemic have been reported, but there are few such studies among people with impairment.
ObjectivesThis study aimed to investigate self-reported use and difficulty in the use of eHealth before the COVID-19 pandemic compared to during late social distancing restrictions in Sweden, among people with and without impairment, as well as between different types of impairment.
MethodsA cross-sectional survey was distributed twice by snowball sampling to people with self-reported impairment and a general population matched by age, gender, and county. Use and difficulty in the use of six eHealth services were compared between groups using
ResultsThe surveys included 1631 (in 2019) and 1410 (in 2021) participants with impairment, and 1084 (in 2019) and 1223 (in 2021) participants without. Participants with impairment, compared to those without impairment, reported less use and more difficulty in booking health care appointments online, digital identification, and the Swedish national web portal for health information and eHealth services (1177.se), both before and during the pandemic (P
ConclusionsThis repeated cross-sectional survey study, including participants with diverse types of impairment and a control group without impairment, reveals persisting disability digital divides, despite an accelerated adoption of eHealth across the pandemic. eHealth services were not accessible to some groups of people who were identified as being at risk of severe disease during the COVID-19 pandemic. This implies that all people could not use eHealth as a measure of infection protection. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-4355ef5c51ba470f8be4ebcf7688316d |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2369-2960 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-03-01 |
| publisher | JMIR Publications |
| record_format | Article |
| series | JMIR Public Health and Surveillance |
| spelling | doaj-art-4355ef5c51ba470f8be4ebcf7688316d2025-08-20T02:12:34ZengJMIR PublicationsJMIR Public Health and Surveillance2369-29602025-03-0111e64707e6470710.2196/64707Accessibility of eHealth Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic Among People With and People Without Impairment: Repeated Cross-Sectional SurveyLinda Petterssonhttp://orcid.org/0000-0003-1730-3131Stefan Johanssonhttp://orcid.org/0000-0002-7975-6198Ingrid Demmelmaierhttp://orcid.org/0000-0002-2068-4708Lena von Kochhttp://orcid.org/0000-0002-8560-3016Jan Gulliksenhttp://orcid.org/0000-0002-2411-6417Per-Olof Hedvallhttp://orcid.org/0000-0002-0962-2899Karl Gummessonhttp://orcid.org/0009-0007-2015-9210Catharina Gustavssonhttp://orcid.org/0000-0002-8709-4446 Abstract BackgroundThe adoption of eHealth accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic. Inequalities in the adoption of eHealth during the COVID-19 pandemic have been reported, but there are few such studies among people with impairment. ObjectivesThis study aimed to investigate self-reported use and difficulty in the use of eHealth before the COVID-19 pandemic compared to during late social distancing restrictions in Sweden, among people with and without impairment, as well as between different types of impairment. MethodsA cross-sectional survey was distributed twice by snowball sampling to people with self-reported impairment and a general population matched by age, gender, and county. Use and difficulty in the use of six eHealth services were compared between groups using ResultsThe surveys included 1631 (in 2019) and 1410 (in 2021) participants with impairment, and 1084 (in 2019) and 1223 (in 2021) participants without. Participants with impairment, compared to those without impairment, reported less use and more difficulty in booking health care appointments online, digital identification, and the Swedish national web portal for health information and eHealth services (1177.se), both before and during the pandemic (P ConclusionsThis repeated cross-sectional survey study, including participants with diverse types of impairment and a control group without impairment, reveals persisting disability digital divides, despite an accelerated adoption of eHealth across the pandemic. eHealth services were not accessible to some groups of people who were identified as being at risk of severe disease during the COVID-19 pandemic. This implies that all people could not use eHealth as a measure of infection protection.https://publichealth.jmir.org/2025/1/e64707 |
| spellingShingle | Linda Pettersson Stefan Johansson Ingrid Demmelmaier Lena von Koch Jan Gulliksen Per-Olof Hedvall Karl Gummesson Catharina Gustavsson Accessibility of eHealth Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic Among People With and People Without Impairment: Repeated Cross-Sectional Survey JMIR Public Health and Surveillance |
| title | Accessibility of eHealth Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic Among People With and People Without Impairment: Repeated Cross-Sectional Survey |
| title_full | Accessibility of eHealth Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic Among People With and People Without Impairment: Repeated Cross-Sectional Survey |
| title_fullStr | Accessibility of eHealth Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic Among People With and People Without Impairment: Repeated Cross-Sectional Survey |
| title_full_unstemmed | Accessibility of eHealth Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic Among People With and People Without Impairment: Repeated Cross-Sectional Survey |
| title_short | Accessibility of eHealth Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic Among People With and People Without Impairment: Repeated Cross-Sectional Survey |
| title_sort | accessibility of ehealth before and during the covid 19 pandemic among people with and people without impairment repeated cross sectional survey |
| url | https://publichealth.jmir.org/2025/1/e64707 |
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