Bob Gann, Digital inclusion Specialist, National Health Service Health information and services are increasingly delivered digitally, a trend which has been accelerated by the Covid-19 pandemic. Digital health literacy skills have become essential for people to participate actively in their own health. Library and knowledge services are taking the lead in supporting people to access digital technologies, engage with services online, and use high quality health information. #CILIPConf20 #empowereddigitalcitizens

1. Supporting digital health literacy and
combating digital health inequality: what
libraries can do
Bob Gann
Digital Inclusion Specialist
@Bob_Gann

2. Health information is ubiquitous –
and increasingly digital
• Over 80% of internet users have searched for health information (Amante, 2015)
• One in twenty Google searches are for health information (Gibbs, 2015)
• There are over 300,000 health related apps (Pohl, 2017)
• Over a million people a day visit the NHS website (NHS.uk analytics)

3. Digital exclusion in the UK
9m people (16% of population
of the UK) cannot use the
internet or a digital device by
themselves
3.6m people (7% of the
population) are not online at all
Those who are digitally
excluded are more likely to be
older, have a disability, earn
lower income, and be less
educated
UK Consumer Digital Index 2020

4. Why are people digitally excluded?
• Access (including broadband
connectivity & affordability)
• Skills (both basic digital skills
and information literacy)
• Communication (language,
disabilities)
• Lack of interest, trust &
motivation
UK Consumer Digital Index 2018

5. Digital health literacy
“Digital health literacy: the ability
to seek, find, understand and
appraise health information from
electronic sources and to apply
the knowledge gained to
addressing or solving a health
problem”
Digital health literacy
requires a set of skills
including:
o traditional literacy
o technology literacy
o data literacy
o scientific literacy
o media literacy
Kickbusch, I et al (2013)
Health literacy: the solid facts. WHO

6. COVID-19 has exposed the digital divide

7. Supporting digital health literacy
Identify and access high quality
information - and challenge fake
news

8. Combating digital health inequality
Providing access and building digital skills

9. Learning from Widening Digital Participation
Report of 3 year national programme published this week
285,000 people involved with 23 local pathfinders
Digital health hubs in local community settings including
libraries, high street shop, homeless centre
Recommendations include:
• Improve digital health literacy for safe and healthy
internet use
• Build the digitals skills of health and care staff, following
Health Education England’s lead
• Create and support network of digital health champions www.goodthingsfoundation.org/research-
publications/digital-inclusion-health-and-
care-lessons-learned-nhs-widening-digital

10. Libraries lead the way
• COVID-19 Fund grants to voluntary organisations
for digital equipment, data & connectivity
• Distributing iPads from biggest tablet lending
scheme in country
• Reconfiguring Digital Champions training via
video conferencing
• Signposting to digital tools and resources
including free online training
• Facilitating adoption of NHS self management
tools and apps
• Auditing digital access across city to see where
help can be provided
100% Digital Leeds is led by Leeds Libraries, with combined
budget from a range of agencies www.digitalinclusionleeds.com

11. Thank you
More information:
Gann, B. (2019) Transforming lives:
combating digital health inequality
IFLA Journal 45(3): 189-97
Gann, B (2020) Combating digital
health inequality in the time of
coronavirus, Journal of Consumer
Health on the Internet, 24:3: 278-284,
email: bob.gann@nhs.net
Twitter: Bob_Gann
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