Author(s): Rosário, Rafaela ; Fronteira, Inês ; Martins, Maria R. O. ; Augusto, Cláudia ; Silva, Maria José ; Messer, Melanie ; Martins, Silvana ; Duarte, Ana ; Ramos, Neida ; Rathmann, Katharina ; Okan, Orkan ; Dadaczynski, Kevin
Date: 2022
Persistent ID: https://hdl.handle.net/1822/80689
Origin: RepositóriUM - Universidade do Minho
Subject(s): digital health literacy; public health and social measures; infodemic; COVID-19
We aimed to evaluate the associations between information searching about public health and social measures (PHSM) and university students’ digital health literacy (DHL) related to the new coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) and COVID-19. Methods: This cross-sectional study included 3,084 Portuguese university students (75.7% females), with an average age of 24.2 (SD = 7.5). Sociodemographic data, DHL questionnaire and online information concerning PHSM were gathered. Cox proportional hazards models were performed. Results: Students who searched for personal protective measures achieved in shorter time sufficient “evaluating reliability” (HR = 1.4; 95% CI = 1.1; 1.7) and “determining relevance” (HR = 1.5; 95% CI = 1.2; 1.8). Searching for surveillance and response measures was associated with sufficient “determining relevance” (HR = 1.4; 95% CI = 1.1; 1.9). Finally, those students who searched for environmental, economic and psychosocial measures achieved in shorter time “determining relevance” (HR = 1.2; 95% CI = 1.0; 1.4). Conclusions: Searching for PHSM was significantly associated with an increased likelihood of achieving sufficient DHL subscales in a shorter time. Further studies are needed, including developing strategies to increase the availability of high-quality information concerning public health and social measures and to improve (digital) health literacy.
