Promoting Digital Health Data Literacy: The Datum Project

With the increased use of digital health innovations in Canadian health care, educating health care users, professionals, and researchers on the ethical challenges and privacy implications of these tools is essential. The Datum project, funded by the Fondation Barreau du Quebec, was created to help these actors better understand legal and ethical issues regarding the collection, use, and disclosure of digital health data for the purposes of scientific research, thereby enhancing literacy around data privacy. The project consists of a multimedia website divided into legislation and policy documents and narrative-based video content. Users can access the core legislation and policies governing the collection and use of health care data geared toward researchers and health practitioners. Users can also view the narrative-based video content explaining key concepts related to digital health data. The Datum project makes an original contribution to the field of law and ethics in health science research by using novel approaches, such as learning health systems and data banks, to improve equity in health care delivery and by generating multimedia content aimed at encouraging health care users to become better consumers and supporting the collective use of their data. The Datum project also promotes digital literacy as a digital communication tool, which has the significant potential to improve health outcomes, bridge the digital divide, and reduce health inequities.