Background: Based on the Hong Kong census data, the proportion of residents over 65 years old is projected to expand from 19.6% in 2021 to 36% in 2046. This highlights that healthcare expenditure will significantly rise due to the ageing population. Given Hong Kong has advanced technology and a high rate of ownership of internet-enabled mobile devices per capital, which presents an opportunity to promote mobile health (mHealth), educating consumers about preventive healthcare via mobile phones, as a future approach to promote health literacy throughout the community.

Method: A cross-sectional survey was conducted between September 2022 and February 2023 to investigate smartphone habits and preferences among the adults aged 65 or above. There were 360 older adults from 18 districts across Hong Kong joined our study. Over 90% owned one smartphone. The findings also revealed that 55% of the participants actively sought health-related information through smartphones, and almost 80% spent over six hours browsing health-related information daily. These results suggest mHealth is a viable alternative to traditional strategies like printed materials and broadcasts in health education and health promotion.
The next step is to establish a web-based platform to integrate educational information from various professional and government websites, as well as develop health promotion program via online platform. It can serve as a hub for delivering health-related seminars on top of face-to-face seminar to attract more audiences.

Conclusion: With the prevalence of smartphones in modern centuries, promoting mHealth can enhance accessibility to health information, ultimately improving health literacy within the community.

Authors:
Venus Hiu Ying Ngai, Hong Kong Metropolitan University, Hong Kong
Mimi Mun Yee Tse, Hong Kong Metropolitan University, Hong Kong

About the Presenter(s)
Ms Venus Hiu Ying Ngai is a University Associate Professor/Senior Lecturer at Hong Kong Metropolitan University in Hong Kong

See this presentation on the full schedule – Thursday Schedule

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