BackgroundOnline health information seeking is an activity that needs to be explored in Scotland. While there are a growing number of studies that adopt a qualitative approach to this issue and attempt to understand the behaviors associated with online health information seeking, previous studies focusing on quantifying the prevalence and pattern of online health seeking in the United Kingdom have been based on Internet users in general.ObjectiveThis exploratory study sought to describe the prevalence of online health information seeking in a rural area of Scotland based on primary data from a patient population.MethodsA survey design was employed utilizing self-completed questionnaires, based on the Pew Internet and American Life Project; questionnaires were distributed among adult patients in 10 primary care centers in a rural community in Scotland.ResultsA convenience sample of 571 (0.10% of the total population in Grampian, N=581,198) patients completed the questionnaire. A total of 68.4% (379/554) of patients had previously used the Internet to acquire health information. A total of 25.4% (136/536) of patients consulted the Internet for health information regarding their current appointment on the day surveyed; 34.6% (47/136) of these patients were influenced to attend their appointment as a result of that online health information. A total of 43.2% (207/479) of patients stated the health information helped improve their health and 67.1% (290/432) indicated that they had learned something new. A total of 34.0% (146/430) of patients talked to a health professional about the information they had found and 90.0% (376/418) reported that the information was useful. In total, 70.4% (145/206) of patients were concerned about obtaining health information online from reliable sources. A total of 67.1% (139/207) of patients were concerned that a health site may sell their personal information, yet only 6.7% (36/535) checked the privacy policy of the site visited. However, 27.9% (55/197) of patients were not concerned about their employer finding out what health sites they visited, whereas 37.5% (78/208) were concerned that others would find out.ConclusionsThe results suggest that online health information-seeking behavior influences offline health-related behavior among the population surveyed. Patient attitudes to online health information seeking were focused on issues relating to trust, reliability, privacy, and confidentiality. This study provides support for the growing phenomenon of an empowered, computer-literate, health information consumer, and the impact of this phenomenon must be considered in the context of the patient-health professional dynamic. The unpredictable nature of human thought and action in relation to this field of study requires an ongoing program of ethnographic research, both physical and virtual, within a Health Web Science framework. This study has provided a baseline of the prevalence of online health information seeking in the Grampian region of Scotland.

Western developed health and care policy is shifting from a patriarchal medical model to a co-managed and integrated approach. Meanwhile, the fourth industrial revolution (Industry 4.0) is transforming manufacturing in line with the digital consumer revolution. Digital health and care initiatives are beginning to use some of the same capabilities to optimize healthcare provision. However, this is usually limited to self-management as part of an organization-centric delivery model. True co-management and integration with other organizations and people is difficult because it requires formal care organizations to share control and extend trust. Through a co-design lens, this paper discusses a more person-centered application of Industry 4.0 capabilities for care. It introduces ‘Care 4.0’, a new paradigm that could change the way people develop digital health and care services, focusing on trusted, integrated networks of organizations, people and technologies. These networks and tools would help people co-manage and use their own assets, in the context of their own care circle and community. It would enable personalized services that are more responsive to care needs and aspirations, offering preventative approaches that ultimately create a more flexible and sustainable set of integrated health and social care services that support meaningful engagement and interactions.

This paper shares key learnings and emerging principles on ways of enabling genuine participation from young people with learning disabilities in co-design.Reviewing previous research focusing on co-design with young people and people with learning disabilities, we highlight key gaps including -a lack of approaches engaging young people with learning disabilities throughout a codesign process; and limited examples of genuine participation focusing on lived experience and engagement in creative and conceptual decision-making. We present our work with young people with learning disabilities to design a gamebased learning tool, with a focus on the co-design process. The work illustrates a situated, tailored Participatory Design approach for engaging participants across all stages of co-design. Findings highlight the importance of contextual preparation by embedding in situ to support multi-vocal, multi-method engagement; and asset-based narratives to empower young people and support expression of voice, enabling creativity and conceptual decision-making.Synthesising key learnings and reflections, we present emerging principles underpinned by a rights-based ethos, with an emphasis on creating the right conditions and developing capacities to enable genuine participation.

For healthcare innovations to be successful, the voices of those receiving or delivering such innovations need to be heard much earlier in the design process. This is not easy as there are likely to be multiple stakeholders involved, and their different backgrounds make it difficult to challenge or evaluate potential innovation in the early stage of development. This paper positions the Experience Lab as a means of co-creating sustainable, innovative solutions to healthcare challenges. The Experience Lab offers participants, both receiving and delivering healthcare, the opportunity to engage in the design process, share insights, experience new concepts and imagine new ways of responding to challenges. The material artefacts and bespoke tools provide the conditions through which to create new meanings and shared experiences. This paper presents the Experience Lab approach, artefacts and tools, providing examples of these in context. The paper concludes with the need for further research to understand the role of artefacts and tools in supporting detail design and implementation beyond the Lab, and the potential of the Lab approach for other contexts.

Background:It is widely recognized that patients have increased anxiety before elective surgery, however, previous research investigating the effect of preassessment clinics (PACs) on anxiety levels has been limited specifically to patient information literature or multimedia use, rather than the consultation process itself. The aim was to investigate the effect attendance at PAC had on patients’ anxiety levels, associated with their subsequent surgery and anesthetic.Materials and Methods:This survey consisted of a cross-sectional, questionnaire-based, quantitative study investigating patients’ anxiety levels before and after attendance at the PAC. The questionnaire consisted of a series of statements concerning the surgery and anesthetic and rated using a Likert-type scale. All adult patients who attended an appointment at the PAC were eligible to participate in the study. Those unable to read and understand the questionnaire were excluded.Results:Overall 121 participants were included in the study. Participants felt less anxious about their subsequent surgery and anesthetic following consultation at the PAC (P < 0.001). This was true for both gender subgroups (P < 0.05) Concerns about intraoperative complications generated the most anxiety. Postoperatively, male participants were most anxious about pain and females about nausea and vomiting. Participants also reported high satisfaction rates for the service at the PAC.Conclusions:This study contributes to a greater understanding of preoperative anxiety and has important implications for PACs. This clinical survey has been able to demonstrate that consultation at the PAC has a statistically significant positive effect on alleviating patients’ anxieties in regards to their surgery and anesthetic.