Social dimensions and preconditions of digitalization in healthcare: Implications of the COVID-19 syndemic

ABSTRACT

The manifold potentials and challenges of digitalization became apparent during the COVID-19 pandemic. This chapter will present and discuss the social aspects of digitalization in times of COVID-19 from different perspectives. In doing so, the focus will be on the following two aspects (1) Interaction and handling of digital information place many demands on information users and on those who provide the information. This has been especially true since the COVID-19 pandemic, which was accompanied by an infodemic. This is where digital health literacy comes in, which is the ability to find, understand, assess, and apply digital information in the context of health. (2) The use of digital technologies on health-related topics is socially unequally distributed in society—both horizontally (gender, age, migration, place of residence) and vertically (socioeconomic status). For this reason, the digital health divide is a major obstacle for digital technologies in healthcare—during COVID-19 and beyond. © 2022 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.