Health Assessment & Promotion

The SRO Health Assessment & Promotion studies innovative treatments and technologies for the assessment and promotion of (mental and social) health. The programme is an interdisciplinary endeavor, combining expertise from the fields of psychology, communication sciences, health services research, epidemiology, economics and medical sciences. Methodology and psychometrics connecting these disciplines are specifically emphasized. The programme has a strong design-oriented approach, with the goal of developing innovative interventions and solutions to improve health promotion and healthcare. The research program has four research lines: Health Assessment, Health Promotion and Care, Health Technology Assessment and Economics and Design and Implementation of eHealth Technologies.

We expect a midterm revision / adjustment of this program medio-2012.

Contact

Programme coordinator: Dr. Erik Taal

E-mail: e.taal@utwente.nl

Chairs

Mental Health Promotion – prof.dr. E. Bohlmeijer

Research Methodology, Measurement & Data Analysis – prof.dr. C. Glas

Experimental Psychology – prof.dr.ing. W.B. Verwey

Expertise centers

Centre for eHealth Research and Disease Management

Full text

Health is one of the most important assets for individuals and for society. Problems in the health domain result in significant reductions in the functioning and quality of life of individuals. Moreover, they entail high societal costs in terms of care provision and the loss of productivity and societal participation. Owing to mounting costs and the ageing population, health will be an increasingly important topic in the near future. Improving care and promoting individual health by enabling people to control and improve their health are therefore of paramount importance. Technology, ranging from biomedical innovations to the use of ICT, is becoming ever more important in the health domain. That is why this research orientation studies innovative technologies in the assessment and promotion of health. Health includes not only the absence of biomedical problems but also the presence of mental health and physical, psychological and social well-being. The present programme is therefore an interdisciplinary endeavour, combining expertise from the fields of psychology, communication sciences, health services research, epidemiology, economics and medical sciences. Methodology and psychometrics connecting these disciplines are specifically emphasized. The programme has a strong design-oriented approach, with the goal of developing innovative interventions and solutions to improve health promotion and healthcare. The research programme has four research lines:

Health Assessment; Measuring health with an emphasis on patient-reported outcomes is the central part of this research line. New instruments are being developed using innovative technologies such as the item response theory, computer adaptive testing and data mining. Examples include the development of new instruments for measuring fatigue, pain, societal participation and mental health. This research theme includes epidemiological studies on the prevalence and incidence of health problems in nationally representative surveys, as well as the analysis of disease progress and improvements regarding quality of life in large hospitalbased cohorts. Innovative technologies are used here in the collection and analysis of data, for example a longitudinal internet study on mental health, and a cohort study on early rheumatoid arthritis using touch screens in waiting rooms.

Health Promotion and Care focuses on the use of technology in the design and evaluation of interventions that aim to promote individual health and improve healthcare. Prevention and patient empowerment play an important role in these interventions. Interventions cover a broad range of topics, including issues related to public health, such as addiction and lifestyle, and issues related to healthcare, such as shared decision-making, selfmanagement of chronic diseases, and the treatment of medical and mental health problems. Besides the acceptance and implementation of new biomedical technologies, such as ultrasound screening in hip dysplasia or helmet therapy, there is a strong focus on the use of eHealth technologies. Examples include online support groups for patients, decision aids, remote monitoring in dementia care, a rheumatology portal, a virtual coach for supporting self-care, and the electronic patient record. Furthermore, emphasis is given to the use of new treatment methods in the mental health domain, for example life review, acceptance and commitment therapy, and ICT-delivered mindfulness.

Health Technology Assessment and Economics studies the implementation and economic evaluation of effective new procedures and technologies for the purpose of improving healthcare and its efficiency, and covers evidence-based medicine, health economics and social-constructive assessment. The impact and implementation of new technologies, including financial arrangements, are of particular methodological interest. Examples include the evaluation of hospital performance, and the cost-effectiveness of smoking prevention programmes and behavioural health and rheumatological interventions.

Design and Implementation of eHealth Technologies focuses on the design and implementation of eHealth technologies for promoting health and improving healthcare. To increase the acceptance and use of eHealth technologies by patients and professionals, user-centred design principles and usability theories are applied. Social networking theories are used to endorse patient and professional participation in the co-creation of innovative technological interventions. To improve the chances of successful implementation of eHealth technologies, useful and effective processes of business modelling are studied and created. Examples include projects aimed at developing persuasive feedback systems and decision support systems (diabetes, infection control, dementia) to motivate patients to do the right things at the right time.