Search

The aim of this study was to investigate whether or not a website (www.health-e-space.com) could be used as a conduit to influence the public to change healthcare-related behaviours. The environmental and financial issues surrounding the use of disposable and reusable nappies was used as an example to investigate if providing information in a certain way could 'nudge' people to consider the possibility of using reusable nappies at the cost of convenience. An online survey was completed by staff and students at Moray College, Elgin. A total of 188 surveys were completed. The study found that showing responders the health-e-space website was an enabling process with 73.4% stating the website encouraged them to think about using reusable nappies in the future. Of those who said that they would use disposable nappies prior to viewing the online information, 39.1% said that they would now use reusables, with 30.5% willing to consider using this type of nappy. Of those who did not know if they would use reusables, after viewing the site, 36.4% said they would now use reusables, and 54.5% said they would now consider this method. Being able to tailor and bring together in one place 'kitemarked' information and links to online health care information which the user may find useful (a form of personalization) is a novel and promising way of promoting self-care through education and empowerment which could ultimately help make health care more sustainable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: National health surveys linked to vital statistics and health care information provide a growing source of individual-level population health data. Pooling linked surveys across jurisdictions would create comprehensive datasets that are larger than most existing cohort studies, and that have a unique international and population perspective. This paper's objectives are to examine the feasibility of pooling linked population health surveys from three countries, facilitate the examination of health behaviours, and present useful information to assist in the planning of international population health surveillance and research studies., Data and Methods: The design, methodologies and content of the Canadian Community Health Survey (2003 to 2008), the United States National Health Interview Survey (2000, 2005) and the Scottish Health Survey (SHeS) (2003, 2008 to 2010) were examined for comparability and consistency. The feasibility of creating common variables for measuring smoking, alcohol consumption, physical activity and diet was assessed. Sample size and estimated mortality events were collected., Results: The surveys have comparable purposes, designs, sampling and administration methodologies, target populations, exclusions, and content. Similar health behaviour questions allow for comparable variables to be created across the surveys. However, the SHeS uses a more detailed risk factor evaluation for alcohol consumption and diet data. Therefore, comparisons of alcohol consumption and diet data between the SHeS and the other two surveys should be performed with caution. Pooling these linked surveys would create a dataset with over 350,000 participants, 28,424 deaths and over 2.4 million person-years of follow-up., Discussion: Pooling linked national population health surveys could improve population health research and surveillance. Innovative methodologies must be used to account for survey dissimilarities, and further discussion is needed on how to best access and analyze data across jurisdictions.