The Use of Digital Health by South Asian Communities: Scoping Review

Abstract

Background South Asian individuals experience a higher burden of chronic diseases and limited access to health care services compared with their Caucasian peers. Digital health interventions can enhance the delivery of health care, minimize health inequities, and consequently improve health status among minority ethnic groups. However, it is unclear how South Asian people view and perceive the use of digital health technologies to support their health needs. Objective The aim of the review is to identify South Asian individuals’ experiences and attitudes of digital health and explore the barriers and facilitators affecting their use of digital health services. Methods The Arksey and O’Malley methodological framework was used to guide this scoping review. Five electronic databases were examined for pertinent papers, which were augmented by searching bibliographies of the retrieved papers and gray literature. A total of 1328 potentially relevant papers were retrieved from the initial search, and the supplemental search added 7 papers to the final list of potentially included papers. Each paper on the initial inclusion list was independently reviewed, leaving 15 papers to be included in the review. Results Data were analyzed thematically leading to the development of two overarching themes: (1) barriers to uptake of digital health and (2) facilitators of use of digital health services. There was a general consensus that South Asian communities still struggle with inadequate access to digital health technologies. Some studies suggest multiple initiatives to improve accessibility and acceptability of digital health services within South Asian communities in order to mitigate health disparities and develop a more inclusive health care system. These include the development of multiple-language and culturally sensitive interventions and digital skill development sessions. Most studies were conducted in South Asian countries, focusing on measurable outcomes of digital health interventions. Few explored the experiences and views of South Asian community members residing in the West as a minority ethnic group, for example, British South Asians. Conclusions Literature mapping proposes that South Asian people frequently struggle with a health care system that may limit their access to digital health services, and sometimes fails to consider social and cultural needs. There is growing evidence that digital health interventions have the potential to facilitate supported self-management, which is part of the plans to adopt person-centered care. These interventions are particularly important for overcoming some of the challenges, for example, time constraints, safety, and gender sensitivity, associated with the delivery of health care interventions in minority ethnic groups such as South Asians in the United Kingdom, and thus to improve minority ethnic groups’ access to health care services to support individual health needs, and consequently enhance health status.

“If it all goes digital, we’ll have to learn”: facilitators and barriers to uptake of digital health in British South Asians with cardiometabolic disease

“…As well as there being significant diversity within South Asian populations in the UK, South Asian populations worldwide, both in South Asian countries, and in the significant diaspora in the USA and Canada, are diverse, and may have experiences of access and engagement with healthcare that is unique to the social, political, economic environment and history. Reviews looking at the experiences of digital health for South Asian people have found limited studies in the UK [13,14]; as such, this paper is an important contribution Fig. 3 Understanding user types and opportunities for engagement with digital towards understanding how services in the UK can take into account the needs of a significant population.…”

“…There is a limited evidence base about DHI acceptability and use in the South Asian population in the UK [13,14], and existing studies draw on data collected prior to the pandemic, when digital approaches were less embedded in the health service. There is a need to understand different populations' experiences and perspectives on digital health to ensure equity in future services, and how, if it all, it has been impacted by the pandemic.…”

“If it all goes digital we’ll have to learn”: Facilitators and barriers to uptake of digital health in British South Asians with cardiometabolic disease

“…As well as there being signi cant diversity within South Asian populations in the UK, South Asian populations worldwide, both in South Asian countries, and in the signi cant diaspora in the USA and Canada, are diverse, and may have experiences of access and engagement with healthcare that is unique to the social, political, economic environment and history. Reviews looking at the experiences of digital health for South Asian people have found limited studies in the UK [13,14]; as such, this paper is an important contribution towards understanding how services in the UK can take into account the needs of a signi cant population. While this study focussed on South Asians, as the largest minority ethnic group in the UK [15], there is need for this work to be repeated in other groups who may experience barriers to digital uptake and use, to understand their speci c needs.…”

“…There is a limited evidence base about DHI acceptability and use in this population [13,14], and existing studies draw on data collected prior to the pandemic, when digital approaches were less embedded in the health service. There is a need to understand different populations' experiences and perspectives on digital health to ensure equity in future services.…”

The Potential of ChatGPT as a Self-Diagnostic Tool in Common Orthopedic Diseases: Exploratory Study

“…Recently, the field of artificial intelligence (AI) has made remarkable progress. The applications of AI in health care have also gained attention [1][2][3][4][5]. One of the most popular forms of AI involves using a natural language processing (NLP) system.…”