Centre for Global Health, Department of Community Medicine and Global Health, Institute of Health and Society, University of Oslo, P.O box 1130, Blindern, 0318 Oslo, Norway.
Interdisciplinary School of Health Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Ottawa, Thompson Hall - THN 136, 25 University Private, Ottawa, ON K1N 7K4, Canada.
Health Promot Int. 2023 Aug 1;38(4). doi: 10.1093/heapro/daab187.
Limited access to health education can be a barrier for reaching the Sustainable Development Goals, especially in rural communities in sub-Saharan Africa. We addressed this gap by installing community information spots (InfoSpots) with access to the internet and a locally stored digital health education platform (the platform) in Migoli and Izazi, Tanzania. The objective of this case study was to explore the perspectives and experiences of InfoSpot users and non-users in these communities. We conducted 35 semi-structured interviews with participants living, working or studying in Migoli or Izazi in February 2020 and subsequently analysed the data using content analysis. The 25 InfoSpot users reported variations in use patterns. Users with more education utilized the platform for their own health education and that of others, in addition to internet surfing. High school students also used the platform for practicing English, in addition to health education. Most InfoSpot users found the platform easy to use; however, those with less education received guidance from other users. Non-users reported that they would have used the InfoSpot with the platform if they had been aware of its existence. All participants reported a positive view of the digital health messages, especially animations as a health knowledge transfer tool. In conclusion, different and unintended use of the platform shows that the communities are creative in ways of utilizing the InfoSpots and gaining knowledge. The platform could have been used by more people if it had been promoted better in the communities.
获取健康教育的机会有限可能成为实现可持续发展目标的障碍，特别是在撒哈拉以南非洲的农村社区。我们在坦桑尼亚的 Migoli 和 Izazi 安装了带有互联网接入的社区信息点（InfoSpots）和一个本地存储的数字健康教育平台（该平台），以此来解决这一差距。本案例研究的目的是探讨这些社区中 InfoSpot 用户和非用户的观点和经验。我们在 2020 年 2 月对居住、工作或学习在 Migoli 或 Izazi 的 35 名参与者进行了半结构化访谈，随后使用内容分析法对数据进行了分析。25 名 InfoSpot 用户报告了使用模式的差异。受教育程度较高的用户除了上网冲浪外，还将平台用于自身和他人的健康教育。高中生除了健康教育外，还利用平台练习英语。大多数 InfoSpot 用户发现该平台易于使用；但是，那些受教育程度较低的用户需要其他用户的指导。非用户报告说，如果他们知道该 InfoSpot 及其平台的存在，他们会使用该平台。所有参与者都对数字健康信息表示积极的看法，尤其是动画作为健康知识传播工具。总之，平台的不同和意外用途表明，社区在利用 InfoSpots 获取知识方面具有创造力。如果该平台在社区中得到更好的推广，那么将会有更多的人使用它。
