ArticleBMC research notes2024
The digital divide in rural and regional communities: a survey on the use of digital health technology and implications for supporting technology use.
Article in BMC research notes, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 34 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
34 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Barriers and Facilitators to Implementing Digital Health Technologies for Remote Management of NCDs in Rural Areas: Mixed Methods Systematic Review.Journal of medical Internet research · 2026Pooled it
- Psychometric Properties of Digital Divide Measurement Instruments in Health Contexts: Systematic Review.JMIR human factors · 2026Pooled it
- Augmenting Engagement in Decentralized Clinical Trials for Atrial Fibrillation: Development and Implementation of a Programmatic Architecture.JMIR cardio · 2025Trial
- Bridging the trust-adoption gap for AI scribes in rural communities: A machine learning approach using the 2024 Canadian digital health survey.International journal of medical informatics · 2026Article
- Understanding the structural and psychological bases of inequality.Nature human behaviour · 2026Article
- Consensus statement on the application of artificial intelligence in osteoporosis screening and management: perspectives from the Asia-Pacific region.Osteoporosis international : a journal established as result of cooperation between the European Foundation for Osteoporosis and the National Osteoporosis Foundation of the USA · 2026Article
- Home-Based Digital Healthcare Interventions for Dementia: A Systematic Review of Patient and Family Caregiver Outcomes.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Health Misinformation in Ethiopia: Myths, Media Dynamics, Public Response, and Policy Implications: A Narrative Review.Public health challenges · 2026Review
- Sociodemographic Drivers of Recruitment and Attrition in Digital Neurological Research: Longitudinal Cohort Study.Journal of medical Internet research · 2026Observational
- Expectations and concerns of primary healthcare patients in rural areas and small towns in Poland regarding artificial intelligence.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- The impact of digital economy on primary healthcare institution efficiency: evidence from China based on spatial effect analysis.BMC primary care · 2026Article
- Towards equitable cancer outcomes for rural and remote communities: reflections, lessons and recommendations.The Lancet regional health. Western Pacific · 2026Review
- Self-care strategies and interventions to address antimicrobial resistance: evidence review and recommendations for national programs, service providers, caregivers, and self-carers.Frontiers in public health · 2026Review
- Co-Design of a Digital Health Platform for Chronic Disease Management in Rural Settings Using a Person-Centered, Collaborative-Care Model: Protocol for a 3-Phase Mixed Methods Study.JMIR research protocols · 2025Article
- Qualitative Evaluation of an Online Technology to Support Rural Caregivers of People with Dementia.Geriatrics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Down the Digital Delta: Health Information Inequities Among Rural Mississippi Caregivers.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Who Makes It Through the Funnel? Sociodemographic Drivers of Recruitment Completion into an AI-Ready Digital Speech Bank.medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences · 2025Article
- Factors Associated With Portal and Telehealth Uptake and Use in a Minoritized, Low-Income Community: Mixed Methods Study.JMIR formative research · 2025Article
- Scoping review of the utilization of wearable devices in pediatric and young adult oncology.NPJ digital medicine · 2025Article
- Development of a Smart Health Care Service Using Metaverse and Chatbot Technologies for Adolescents, Parents, and School Health Teachers: User-Centered Design Approach.Journal of medical Internet research · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
15 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveA digital divide exists for people from rural and regional areas where they are less likely and confident to engage in digital health technologies. The aim of this study was to evaluate the digital health literacy and engagement of people from rural and regional communities, with a focus on identifying barriers and facilitators to using technology.
resultsForty adults living in rural/regional areas completed a survey consisting of the eHealth Literacy Scale (eHEALS) with additional items surveying participants' experience with a range of digital health technologies. All participants had used at least one digital health technology. Most (80%) participants had an eHEALS score of 26 or above indicating confidence in online health information. Commonly reported barriers to digital health technology use centred on product complexity and reliability, awareness of resources, lack of trust, and cost. Effective digital health technology use is becoming increasingly important, there may be a need to prioritise and support people with lower levels of digital health literacy. We present opportunities to support community members in using and accessing digital health technology.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.