Digital Health Solutions Must Prioritize Equity to Avoid Widening Health Disparities
The integration of digital health technologies can exacerbate existing health inequities if not intentionally designed with a focus on underinvested communities.
PLOS Digital Health · 2023
Key Findings
- 01Numerous solutions exist across policy, design, implementation, and evaluation to address DDOH.
- 02Common themes emerged across solutions regardless of specific community or technology.
- 03Less information was available on evaluation and monitoring solutions, correlating with a lack of evidence on effectiveness.
- 04Universal strategies can be developed to address DDOH.
Application
Design takeaway
When designing digital health solutions, actively involve representatives from underinvested communities throughout the design and development process, and plan for ongoing evaluation of equity outcomes.
How to apply
When developing any digital health product, conduct user research specifically with underinvested populations to identify potential barriers to access, usability, and adoption, and integrate these findings into the design.
Project actions
- 01When researching a user group, focus on understanding their specific digital access and literacy levels.
- 02Consider how cultural factors might influence the adoption and use of a digital product.
- 03Think about how to make your design accessible to users with varying levels of technical skill.
Method & Evidence
Variables
Strengths & Limitations
Strengths
- +Comprehensive search of multiple databases.
- +Systematic categorization of solutions.
- +Expert review process.
Limitations
The scope of the original research was limited to English-language articles and did not deeply investigate the effectiveness of all proposed solutions.
Reliability & validity
The reliability of the findings is supported by the systematic review process and multiple expert reviewers. Validity is enhanced by the broad scope of the literature search, though the focus on solutions rather than proven effectiveness may limit the certainty of recommendations.
Think critically
To what extent can universal design strategies truly address the nuanced and context-specific digital needs of diverse underinvested communities, or is hyper-localization of design essential?
Design Principles
"Design for equity by understanding and addressing the unique barriers and needs of all user groups, especially those historically underserved."
Designers and developers must move beyond simply creating functional digital health tools. A critical consideration is how these tools impact different user groups, particularly those historically marginalized, to ensure technology serves as a bridge rather than a barrier to equitable healthcare.
What This Means for Your Design
When making health apps or websites, make sure they work for everyone, especially people who don't have as much access to technology or support, so that technology doesn't make health problems worse for them.
How to use in your project
- 1.Reference this study when discussing the importance of user research for diverse populations in your design project's context.
- 2.Use the findings to justify the inclusion of specific user groups in your testing and development phases.
Add to My Project
Quick Cite
(2023). Strategies and solutions to address Digital Determinants of Health (DDOH) across underinvested communities. PLOS Digital Health. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pdig.0000314 Retrieved from https://designdex.org/study/42ac3e3b-3105-4a55-9166-2271723559ae/digital-health-solutions-must-prioritize-equity-to-avoid-widening-health-disparities
Paragraph starter
This research highlights the critical need to address Digital Determinants of Health (DDOH) to ensure digital health solutions do not widen existing health disparities. By identifying numerous strategies across policy, design, and implementation, the study underscores that proactive, equity-focused design is essential for underinvested communities. Designers must therefore prioritize user-centered approaches that understand and mitigate potential barriers to access and usability, ensuring technology serves to improve health outcomes for all.
Source
PLOS Digital Health
Strategies and solutions to address Digital Determinants of Health (DDOH) across underinvested communities
journal · 2023
View sourceQuestions about this research
- What does the research say about digital health solutions must prioritize equity to avoid widening health disparities?
- When designing digital health solutions, actively involve representatives from underinvested communities throughout the design and development process, and plan for ongoing evaluation of equity outcomes. Evidence: PLOS Digital Health (2023).
- Why does "Digital Health Solutions Must Prioritize Equity to Avoid Widening Health Disparities" matter for design?
- Designers and developers must move beyond simply creating functional digital health tools. A critical consideration is how these tools impact different user groups, particularly those historically marginalized, to ensure technology serves as a bridge rather than a barrier to equitable healthcare.
- How can designers apply this research?
- When designing digital health solutions, actively involve representatives from underinvested communities throughout the design and development process, and plan for ongoing evaluation of equity outcomes.
- What were the main findings?
- Numerous solutions exist across policy, design, implementation, and evaluation to address DDOH.. Common themes emerged across solutions regardless of specific community or technology.. Less information was available on evaluation and monitoring solutions, correlating with a lack of evidence on effectiveness.. Universal strategies can be developed to address DDOH.
- What research method was used?
- Scoping Review with 132 articles (randomly selected from 345).
- How strong is the evidence?
- Evidence strength is rated Moderate effect, based on a 2023 journal from PLOS Digital Health.
- What should I do differently in my next project?
- When developing any digital health product, conduct user research specifically with underinvested populations to identify potential barriers to access, usability, and adoption, and integrate these findings into the design.
- What are the limitations?
- The review was limited to English-language articles and did not deeply explore the effectiveness of all identified solutions, particularly in the evaluation and monitoring phases.
- Is there evidence that digital health affects design outcomes?
- The review identified many potential solutions for making digital health more equitable, with common themes appearing across different contexts. However, there's a significant gap in understanding how to effectively evaluate and monitor these solutions, and a lack of evidence on their actual impact. Designers and devel Source: PLOS Digital Health (2023).
- Where does this solutions research apply?
- Digital Health, Healthcare Equity, Underinvested Communities It sits within user-centred design research on designdex.org.
Related research topics
digital health design research · evidence on digital health · does digital health improve design outcomes · solutions studies for designers · digital health and solutions findings · user-centred design research evidence