An introduction to digital determinants of health
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Author(s)
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
In recent years, technology has been increasingly incorporated within healthcare for the provision of safe and efficient delivery of services. Although this can be attributed to the benefits that can be harnessed, digital technology has the potential to exacerbate and reinforce preexisting health disparities. Previous work has highlighted how sociodemographic, economic, and political factors affect individuals' interactions with digital health systems and are termed social determinants of health [SDOH]. But, there is a paucity of literature addressing how the intrinsic design, implementation, and use of technology interact with SDOH to influence health outcomes. Such interactions are termed digital determinants of health [DDOH]. This paper will, for the first time, propose a definition of DDOH and provide a conceptual model characterizing its influence on healthcare outcomes. Specifically, DDOH is implicit in the design of artificial intelligence systems, mobile phone applications, telemedicine, digital health literacy [DHL], and other forms of digital technology. A better appreciation of DDOH by the various stakeholders at the individual and societal levels can be channeled towards policies that are more digitally inclusive. In tandem with ongoing work to minimize the digital divide caused by existing SDOH, further work is necessary to recognize digital determinants as an important and distinct entity.
Date Issued
2024-01
Date Acceptance
2024-01-01
Citation
PLOS Digital Health, 2024, 3 (1)
ISSN
2767-3170
Publisher
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Journal / Book Title
PLOS Digital Health
Volume
3
Issue
1
Copyright Statement
Copyright: © 2024 Chidambaram et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
License URL
Identifier
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/38175828
Publication Status
Published
Coverage Spatial
United States
Article Number
e0000346
Date Publish Online
2024-01-04