EVALUATION OF E-HEALTH LITERACY AMONG PARENTS IN TERMS OF DEMOGRAPHIC CHARACTERISTICS

Abstract

E-health literacy is of great importance for parents in terms of protecting their children's health, detecting illnesses at an early stage, and accessing appropriate healthcare services in a timely manner. The ability to access, accurately interpret, and apply health information provided through digital platforms enables parents to support their children's physical and mental development in a healthy way. Additionally, parents who can effectively use services such as e-prescriptions, digital vaccination schedules, and online doctor appointments can benefit more efficiently from the healthcare system. Therefore, parents with high e-health literacy levels can contribute more consciously and actively to their children's health and developmental processes. The aim of this study is to evaluate the e-health literacy levels of parents living in Istanbul, who have children in preschool and primary school education levels, in terms of demographic and general characteristics through statistical analyses. Analyses were conducted for a total of 400 parents. Since the data did not show a normal distribution, non-parametric methods were used in the analysis of group differences. The Mann-Whitney U test was applied for two-group comparisons, and the Kruskal-Wallis test was used for three or more groups. The results showed that overall e-health literacy scores were significantly higher among parents who were female, aged between 20-30, had postgraduate education, had income higher than expenses, had two children, and tended to search for health information online before visiting a doctor. To increase e-health literacy among parents, various educational, technological, and social strategies should be developed. There is a growing need for parents who can adapt to the digital age, reduce the burden on the healthcare system, and consciously contribute to the healthy development of their children.