VILNIUS, Lithuania, April 05, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- From medical institutions to tech corporations to health startups and investors – everyone in the health field have turned their focus toward digital health during the pandemic. While the number of virtual visits to the doctor’s office is decreasing after the lockdowns ended, the field is still going strong, which is confirmed by the fact that investments in the industry nearly doubled in 2020. A new survey of 1,004 American adults carried out by digital health company Kilo Health shows several new trends that might shine a new light on health-related consumer behavior online.
Americans try health advice they find online
According to the Kilo Health survey, 93% of Americans searched for health information online at least once, and a whopping 82% have tried health advice they found online. 74% researched 1–5 different topics, while 19% looked for more than 5 topics. In most cases, people were researching around 3 topics.
This shows a steep growth from 2009, when, according to the CDC, 61% of people sought health information online. In 2014, Pew Research Center reported that the number of adult internet users researching health information online was 72%. As Kasparas Aleknavicius, MD, Head of Medical Affairs at Kilo Health, explains, this growth, while natural due to the higher adoption of technology in general, poses a risk.
“False information is more likely to be shared on social media sites than accurate news,” explains Aleknavicius. “If people are trying out health advice they find online at such a high rate, they could be putting their health in danger.”
Around half don’t use all of the digital tools available
The Kilo Health survey also highlights that even though the digital health industry grows, the understanding of all the available options for patients lags behind.
The researchers asked respondents to define how they interpreted the phrase "digital health". 56% of individuals link "digital health" with accessing their physicians via digital technologies, including the 7% who said it meant telemedicine or telehealth. However, only 8% think the term defines health apps, 6% see it as websites or web searches, and 14% of people couldn’t find a way to describe this term at all.
“It’s clear that patients are quite familiar with the telemedicine element of digital health. It’s a convenient way to get medical advice straight from the source. However, many people avoid using it because they don’t have insurance,” says Aleknavicius.
Contact information:
Rugilė Stroputė
Kilo Health
+370 674 42 633
rugile.stropute@kilo.health
