JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

In recent years, electronic resources have emerged as a prevalent method for disseminating health information. Electronic health literacy (eHealth Literacy, eHL) means individuals' competencies to effectively acquire and utilize health information. Enhancing eHL is thus essential to facilitate individuals' effective engagement with electronic resources and promotes improved health management.

Objective:

This scoping review aimed to synthesize existing literature on eHL interventions, thereby providing a reference for future intervention strategies.

Methods:

A systematic search was conducted across multiple databases, including PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, ProQuest, CINAHL, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), VIP Database, Wanfang Data, and SinoMed. The search encompassed literature from inception until August 14, 2024, with a focus on aggregating and analyzing the identified studies.

Results:

A total of 35 studies were included in this review. The majority of interventions (34.3%, 12/35) were delivered online via mobile applications or devices, with a predominant reliance on independent learning methodologies (68.6%, 24/35). The environments in which these interventions were implemented included educational institutions, public learning spaces, healthcare facilities, welfare centers, and recreational venues. The interventions primarily targeted improvements in information literacy, health literacy, and computer or digital literacy within the six domains of eHL. However, only one study provided a comprehensive evaluation across all six eHL domains. Notably, 62.9% of the studies did not incorporate a theory. Interventions were predominantly conducted on a weekly basis (54.5%, 6/11) and typically spanned 24 weeks (17.1%, 6/35). Additionally, 71.4% of studies did not assess long-term effects. The outcome measures include eHL and its impact on health knowledge, behavior, and health outcomes. These interventions showed an increase in participants' health literacy and eHL-related skills, an increase in epilepsy knowledge, blood pressure self-management, stroke and HIV-related knowledge, vitality and engagement of people living with HIV, and childhood caries and liver lipid. The eHealth Literacy Scale (eHEALS) was identified as the most widely used tool for assessing eHL.

Conclusions:

eHL interventions have shown potential in promoting individual health behaviors and improving health outcomes; however, this conclusion requires further validation through additional statistical analyses and empirical research. The design of eHL interventions may be influenced by the delivery settings, necessitating adjustments tailored to diverse health issues and participant demographics. Current limitations persist in the application of theory, the comprehensiveness of eHL components, and the assessment of long-term effects. Future research should investigate specific eHL theories, examining how the form, frequency, and duration of interventions affect their long-term outcomes, with particular emphasis on their relevance across varying delivery settings and among diverse participant groups.