Faculty of Nursing and Health Sciences, Nord University, Bodø, Norway.
Faculty of Nursing and Health Sciences, Nord University, Levanger, Norway.
BMC Health Serv Res. 2023 Aug 10;23(1):848. doi: 10.1186/s12913-023-09867-w.
Scandinavian countries are internationally recognised for leading the way in older adult care and in digitally transforming healthcare. Dignity has become a central value in care for older adults in all three Scandinavian countries. Investigating documents about digitalisation in these countries can offer insights into how the dignity of older adults is impacted by digitally transforming healthcare. This study aims to provide knowledge about digital strategies and eHealth policies concerning older adults' dignity in three Scandinavian countries: Norway, Sweden and Denmark.
National-level documents by the Norwegian Directorate of eHealth, the Norwegian Directorate of Health, the Swedish Ministry of Health and Social Affairs and the Danish Ministry of Health concerning older adults were used as data sources. In addition, a systematic search of databases, informed by the Joanna Briggs Institute framework for systematic reviews of text and opinion papers, was undertaken to find relevant papers. All extracts concerning national digital strategies or innovative eHealth policies were deductively coded. Thereafter, extracts concerning older adults were inductively coded using a thematic analytic approach.
A total of 26 sources satisfied the inclusion criteria, 14 governmental papers and 12 other papers. The three countries' national digital strategies focused on access to digital technologies and continuous learning for digital skills. The included papers describing national eHealth policies underlined the importance of placing the patient at the centre of healthcare and how digital systems can increase feelings of safety. Both types of documents concerned access to data, digital device security and the human dimension of care.
The findings present evidence on Scandinavian countries' national digital strategies and innovative eHealth policies concerning older adults' dignity. The documents describe a lack of digital competence among older adults, resulting disengagement may put their well-being and human dignity at risk. Findings also underline the importance of security and at the same time the human dimension of care: Use of new digital systems must be meaningfully integrated into digital strategies and eHealth policies. All three Scandinavian countries strategies and policies underline the importance of equal access to healthcare services, as thus they promote a stance of dignified care.
斯堪的纳维亚国家在老年人护理和医疗保健数字化转型方面处于国际领先地位。尊严已成为这三个斯堪的纳维亚国家所有老年人护理的核心价值观。研究这些国家的数字化转型相关文件可以深入了解数字化转型对老年人尊严的影响。本研究旨在提供关于斯堪的纳维亚三国（挪威、瑞典和丹麦）老年人尊严的数字战略和电子健康政策的知识。
本研究使用了挪威电子健康局、挪威卫生部、瑞典卫生部和丹麦卫生部的国家层面的文件作为数据来源，这些文件涉及老年人的数字战略和电子健康政策。此外，还根据乔安娜·布里格斯研究所（Joanna Briggs Institute）系统评价文本和观点论文的框架，对数据库进行了系统搜索，以寻找相关论文。所有关于国家数字战略或创新电子健康政策的摘录均采用演绎编码。然后，采用主题分析方法对涉及老年人的摘录进行归纳编码。
共有 26 份来源符合纳入标准，包括 14 份政府文件和 12 份其他文件。这三个国家的国家数字战略侧重于获取数字技术和不断学习数字技能。所包括的描述国家电子健康政策的文件强调了将患者置于医疗保健中心的重要性，以及数字系统如何增加安全感。这两种类型的文件都涉及到数据访问、数字设备安全和护理的人文关怀。
研究结果提供了斯堪的纳维亚国家有关老年人尊严的国家数字战略和创新电子健康政策的证据。这些文件描述了老年人缺乏数字能力，这可能导致他们脱离社会，从而危及他们的福祉和人的尊严。研究结果还强调了安全和护理的人文关怀的重要性：新的数字系统的使用必须有意义地融入数字战略和电子健康政策中。这三个斯堪的纳维亚国家的战略和政策都强调了平等获得医疗服务的重要性，因此，它们倡导了一种有尊严的护理方式。
