Training to use smart tablets to access reliable online health information in older adults' post-pandemic: A focused pilot intervention study.
Anitha Saravanan, Marcia Shade, Yujun Liu and 5 others
PMID 38359740WHAT IT FOUND
Older adults new to smart tablets valued easier access to health information but needed short, one-on-one training, reliable websites, and support for anxiety, passwords, and judging online sources.
Key findings
01Participants appreciated tablets as a convenient way to manage appointments, hospital treatments, and health information.
02Participants described barriers such as unfamiliarity with tablets and difficulty judging whether online health information was reliable.
03Participants asked for short, focused, one-on-one training and step-by-step guides.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
Only 13 older adults from two retirement homes in one urban community in northern Illinois were studied, and those homes served residents with low to moderate income and did not have separate rooms for computer access, so the findings may not apply to other older adults or settings. Participants were selected by convenience sampling, were mostly women (11 of 13), and were required to have no cognitive, motor, or neurological impairment that would prevent tablet use. The paper did not report income, education, or other demographics that could help explain the findings. Training was delivered by student nurses and staff, practice time was not tracked, and no user guide was provided, so it is unclear how much independent use happened after the sessions. The study reports experiences and suggestions, not measured health, technology use, or learning outcomes.
Declared interests
The authors reported no personal or financial conflicts of interest. Samsung tablets were purchased from a funded grant.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that smart tablet training improves older adults' health, confidence, or digital literacy. This qualitative pilot reports what 13 participants said after training, and it did not measure outcomes.