Background Unsatisfactory participation rate at population based organised breast cancer screening is a long standing problem. Social media, with 3.2 billion users in 2019, is potentially an important site of breast cancer related discourse. Determining whether these platforms might be used as channels by screening providers to reach under-screened women may have considerable public health significance. Objectives By systematically reviewing original research studies on breast cancer related social media discourse, we had two aims: first, to assess the volume, participants and content of breast screening social media communication and second, to find out whether social media can be used by screening organisers as a channel of patient education.

Background With the expansion of digital health, it is imperative to consider intervention techniques in order not to be the cause of even more social health inequalities in underserved populations struggling with chronic diseases. Telemedicine solutions for homeless persons might compensate for shortcomings in access to valuable health services in different settings. The main aim of our research was to examine the attitudes and openness of homeless persons regarding telecare on a Hungarian sample. Methods Quantitative survey among homeless people (n = 98) was completed in 4 shelters providing mid- and long-term accommodation in Budapest, Hungary. Attitudes regarding healthcare service accessibility and telecare were measured by a self-developed questionnaire of the research team. Telecare attitude comparison was made with data of a Hungarian weighted reference group of non-homeless persons recruited from 2 primary care units (n = 110). Results A significant fraction of homeless people with mid- or long-term residency in homeless shelters did not oppose the use of telecare via live online video consultation and there was no difference compared to the national reference group (averages of 3.09 vs. 3.15, respectively). Results of the homeless group indicate that those more satisfied with healthcare services, in general, manifest more openness to telecare. It is clearly demonstrated by the multivariate analysis that those participants in the homeless group who had problems getting health care in the last year definitely preferred in-person doctor-patient consultations. Conclusion Digital health technologies offer a potentially important new pathway for the prevention and treatment of chronic conditions among homeless persons. Based on the attitudes towards telecare, initiating an on-site telecare program for mid- and long-term residents of homeless shelters might enable better care continuity. Our results draw attention to the key factors including building trust in the implementation of such programs among underserved and other vulnerable patient groups.

Bevezetés: A digitalizáció egészségügyre gyakorolt hatása az elmúlt évek egyik legfontosabb kutatási területévé vált. E folyamatot a COVID–19-járvány is jelentősen katalizálta. Célkitűzés: Országosan reprezentatív, lakossági kutatásunkban (n = 1500) arra kerestünk választ, hogy a magyarországi páciensek miként használják a digitális egészség eszköztárát, milyen előnyöket, hátrányokat jelent ezeknek a technológiáknak a bevezetése és alkalmazása, és hogyan alakítja át mindez az orvos-beteg kapcsolatot. Módszer: Országos reprezentatív kérdőíves felmérést végeztünk, telefonos megkereséssel (CATI), 1500 fő megkérdezésével. A minta nem, kor, településtípus és iskolai végzettség tekintetében reprezentálja Magyarország nagykorú lakosságát. Eredmények: A válaszadók 81,3%-a használja az internetet, a használók 87,6%-a – ez a teljes minta 71,2%-át jelenti – egészséggel, betegséggel kapcsolatban is. Az internetes tájékozódás legfontosabb forrásai a weboldalak (76,3%) és a közösségi média (47,3%). Az e-receptet és az online időpontfoglalást ismerik a páciensek közül a legtöbben (92,6% és 85,2%), ugyanakkor a megkérdezettek közel fele kipróbálná a távvizitet, és szívesen venné, ha orvosa ajánlana neki hiteles weboldalakat, applikációkat és szenzorokat. Eredményeink azt mutatják, hogy a településtípus hatása a digitális egészségüggyel kapcsolatos kérdésekben nem jelentős, ugyanakkor az életkor, az iskolai végzettség és a nem hatása számottevő. Következtetés: Országos, reprezentatív lakossági felmérésünk adatai azt mutatják, hogy a digitális egészségügyi megoldások használata már jelenleg is az ellátás integráns része, ugyanakkor nagymértékű igény rajzolódik ki a további digitális lehetőségek irányában is. Orv Hetil. 2022; 163(29): 1159–1165.

Digital health solutions could alleviate the needs of vulnerable populations in the recent period of the permacrisis, however, there are several barriers that limit their use for certain individuals. We use the four-pillar model of the novel concept of techquity to provide original evidence of the discrepancy in the willingness to try and the ability to harness healthtech in Hungary. We identified three underserved segments of society: older adults, people with long-term activity-limiting conditions, and people experiencing homelessness who could greatly benefit from digital technologies and yet use them less than the general population. We also discuss potential strategic considerations in order to promote techquity and digital inclusion among people living in vulnerable situations.

Use of digital healthcare among people living with disabilitiesThe COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the importance of digital healthcare solutions that can offer many benefits to all sections of the population, but for some key target groups, such as those with disabilities, there is significant potential for its use in making everyday life easier.In our survey, we examined whether there is a difference in the use of digital health solutions between disabled and the non-disabled people.Using a telephone survey, we inquired about the use of digital health solutions in a nationally representative sample of the Hungarian adult population (n = 1500). As part of the sample, we also obtained information of the characteristics of people with severe disabilities (n = 74) and those with mild disabilities (n = 198).Severely disabled people use the internet half as much as non-disabled people (41.9% vs. 86.6%). However, severely disabled Internet users are more likely to use it on a daily basis for health purposes. Disabled people use websites and scientific literature search sites to a lesser extent than non-disabled people, but are more likely to use medical and healthcare professional interfaces. Digital technologies (such as emailing, electronic sharing of findings, online appointments) are less common in interactions with physicians, although they find physicians more positive about patients' use of the Internet.Although the spread of digital technologies would undoubtedly be useful for people with disabilities, they are still significantly lagging behind those without disabilities, so it would be worthwhile to focus on this target group for both health policy makers and technology developers.