Internet Use, Electronic Health Literacy, and Hypertension Control among the Elderly at an Urban Primary Care Center in Thailand: A Cross-Sectional Study

Auswin Rojanasumapong, Wichuda Jiraporncharoen, Nopakoon Nantsupawat, Mary Ellen Gilder, Chaisiri Angkurawaranon and Kanokporn Pinyopornpanish
Additional contact information
Auswin Rojanasumapong: Department of Family Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand
Wichuda Jiraporncharoen: Department of Family Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand
Nopakoon Nantsupawat: Department of Family Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand
Mary Ellen Gilder: Department of Family Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand
Chaisiri Angkurawaranon: Department of Family Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand
Kanokporn Pinyopornpanish: Department of Family Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 18, 1-11

Abstract: This study aimed to explore the internet usage and electronic health literacy (eHL) among adults aged 60 and older with hypertension and to explore the associations between eHL and blood pressure control. A cross-sectional survey was conducted at an out-patient primacy care clinic in the urban city center of Chiang Mai, Thailand. eHL was measured using the eHealth Literacy Scale (eHEALS). Logistic regression was used to identify the association between eHL and blood pressure, adjusting for age and sex as a priori confounders and key sociodemographic factors previously identified in univariable analysis. A total of 110 older adult patients with a history of diagnosed hypertension agreed to participate. The mean age of the participants was 67 years old. Fifty-six participants (50.9%) had used the internet in their lifetime. Among internet users, 37 out of 56 participants (66%) could be classified as having high eHL. However, there was insufficient evidence for associations among internet use, eHL and hypertension control. This result potentially creates new opportunities for eHealth education and interventions. Efforts to produce centralized clear, reliable health information targeting this demographic would be worthwhile to help manage chronic diseases such as hypertension in Thailand in the future.

Keywords: internet use; electronic health literacy; hypertension; older adults (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/18/9574/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/18/9574/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:18:y:2021:i:18:p:9574-:d:633403

Access Statistics for this article

IJERPH is currently edited by Ms. Jenna Liu

More articles in IJERPH from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().