Digital Health Literacy: A Cornerstone of Health Equity in the EU Policy Brief

As the European Union (EU) moves towards greater digitalisation, ensuring high levels of digital health literacy amongst individuals is essential for equitable access to healthcare. The World Health Organization (WHO) has defined digital health literacy as “the ability to search, find, understand and evaluate health information from electronic resources and to use the knowledge gained to solve health-related problems”. People already vary widely in their ability to manage their health and healthcare, a concept known as health literacy.

Digital health literacy introduces an additional dimension: the ability to navigate digital environments, which is increasingly required for accessing healthcare.
In our policy brief, we first outline the importance of digital health literacy in the EU and any current challenges. Second, we make key recommendations to ensure that all people in the EU can benefit equally from healthcare services.