Digital health literacy and well-being of health sciences students from MU-Sofia during the pandemic

Abstract Background The aim of the study is to demonstrate the Digital health literacy and the well-being of the students from different faculties in Medical University - Sofia during the pandemic. Methods To achieve the purpose of the study a web-based questionnaire was distributed among health sciences students from the Faculty of Public Health and the Medical College -Sofia, as well as medical students from the Faculty of Medicine all from Medical University -Sofia in Bulgaria. Data was collected between February and April 2022, and all respondents participated anonymously and voluntarily. Established statistical methods were used in data analysis. Results Completed questionnaires were received from 239 students. Data collected show that among participants the majority (81,4%) were females, and 73,3% were studying in a Bachelor's programme. Among the respondents 87.7% found it easy, or very easy to use the proper words or search query to find the information they were looking for about coronavirus or related topics. Finally 29,3% of health sciences students expressed low to very low well-being during the last two weeks and the rest 70,7% expressed high well-being. Conclusions The presented results draw attention to the fact that during the pandemic health sciences students demonstrate the appropriate skills in searching and acquiring the information about coronavirus or related topics. In addition, translating and applying the information could contribute to benefit the psychological well-being of the students. In a digitally transformed health sector it is significant for future health professionals to obtain competencies including digital health literacy to promote health and well-being of the patients and provide better outcomes for them. The necessity of digital competences was underlined and thus we need further more, and in depth education in ICT, and digital technologies to all students, starting from the beginning of their studies.


Background:
During the Covid-19 pandemic the students in the Faculty of Mathematics and Informatics at Sofia University 'St.Kliment Ohridski' applied their abilities for searching health-related information and use it as a factor to improve their well-being.

Methods:
The study used the Questionnaire developed by Dadaczynski, K., Okan, O. & Rathmann, K. in 2020 as COVID-19 Health Literacy Survey: University Students (COVID-HL Survey), and the respective Scale Documentation under the Public Health Centre Fulda (PHZF) at the Fulda University of Applied Sciences & Interdisciplinary Centre for Health Literacy Research at Bielefeld University.216 students, almost 13% (12.78%) of 1.690 students approached, participated.

Results:
There is a correlation as our students reported Very easy or easy to the question how easy they deal with the coronavirus information on the Internet -with 71% choosing from all the information they find, 91% using the proper words to find the information, and 71% finding the exact information.Those results were achieved as our students reported feeling over the last two weeks 27.12% very low, 18.08% low, and only 54.80% high (>50) well-being, measuring the dimensions of psychological general well-being by the WHO-5.

Conclusions:
Our students reported they can search and retrieve the appropriate information on the coronavirus or related topics, and they are satisfied with the information found.Our students' abilities to search and retrieve health-related information are applicable even under the pandemic pressure, where they contribute to the improvement of their well-being Background: Digital communication technologies had a crucial role during the COVID-19 pandemic, with the internet and Social Media as highly frequented sources for retrieving health information.University student's health and well-being were highly affected and most interaction with peers and professionals migrated to the digital realm, which made digital health literacy (DHL) a key competence to navigate digital health environments.The main goal of the study was to explore DHL of students in Germany.

Methods:
A cross-sectional online survey among students (N = 14916) from 130 universities in Germany was implemented as part of the global Covid-HL Network, collecting data on DHL, physical and mental health, SoC and sociodemographics.Data was analyzed using univariate, bivariate and regression analyses.

Results:
Assessing the reliability of information (5964/14,103, 42.3%) and determining commercial interest of information posed the most difficult tasks (5489/14,097, 38.9%).Difficulties were revealed for finding information (4282/14,098, 30.4%).Female students reported lower DHL and social media use was associated with lower judgment skills.38% of all students reported low and very low well-being and 29% reported at least two health complaints weekly, while health outcomes follow a social gradient (lower SES and gender).Regression analysis showed significant association between SoC and well-being (OR: 1.2-2.03)and health complaints (OR: 1.58-1.71).Higher future worries were with low well-being (OR: 2.83) and multiple health complaints (OR: 2.84).

Conclusions:
There is an urgent need to enhance DHL and SoC of students and implement health promotion strategies, using target group specific intervention.Gender and socioeconomic differences must be taken into account and interventions could be delivered within the university.Measures should also address student mental health.

11.G. Round table: Resilient health systems: harnessing health information to improve population health
Abstract citation ID: ckac129.715 Organised by: EUPHA-PHMR, EUPHA-HSR, EUPHA-ECO, Sciensano (Belgium), PHIRI Chair persons: Petronille Bogaert (EUPHA-PHMR), Johan Hansen (EUPHA-HSR) Contact: Shona.Cosgrove@sciensano.be Health systems are built to improve the health of the population.When the COVID-19 crisis hit Europe, the sustained performance of these health systems was challenged.The resilience of these health systems, defined as the ability to absorb, adapt, and transform to cope with shocks (Observatory, 2021), was found to be different in the many European countries, leaving some important lessons to be learned and best practices to be showcased to help countries assess their own response to the COVID-19 pandemic and support efforts to strengthen health systems in Europe.A common denominator is health information; the data and information that is needed to monitor the health of patients as well as the general population.Especially in times of crisis, the availability and trustworthiness of these data is of utmost importance.The COVID-19 pandemic showed that within a substantial number of European countries, health information systems were not always equipped to accommodate the data and information flows that were needed in order for researchers to provide the best available evidence to underpin health policy decisions.Ad-hoc surveillance and monitoring systems were set up (under emergency legislation) and clear governance of health information was lacking.In addition, sharing data and information across European borders and ensuring comparability of data and indicators proved to be difficult in a timely manner during the COVID-19 crisis.This resulted in a European landscape with different national and federal health policies, based on sometimes poor scientific findings.However, when the crisis progressed, numerous national and international initiatives were set up aiming to harmonize the available health information and as of now, many of these initiatives are forming a solid foundation of the health systems, rendering their performance sustainable for the future.In this workshop, which is organized as a round table discussion, we will discuss the resilience of health information systems in European countries, with regards to lessons learned from the COVID-19 crisis, barriers to sharing health information within and across borders, best practices and future perspectives.The topic will be highlighted from multiple perspectives, bringing together experts from different backgrounds, including the European level (European Commission and European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies), the country level, and the perspective of European projects.The audience will be able to provide their view on the different topics through an interactive voting poll during the session.Throughout the session, the exchange of knowledge, experiences and opinions with the audience will be facilitated by the chairs.

Key messages:
Population health information plays a key role in times of crisis, with trustworthy information flows facilitating evidence-informed policies and decision-making.
15th European Public Health Conference 2022