E-health literacy in nursing

Recent years have seen a steadily increasing interest in using digital sources to obtain health-related information. Furthermore, information and communication technologies (ICT) are important in supporting professional activities performed by health care workers worldwide. The term e-health literacy (eHL) refers to the ability of people using the Internet to search for, find, understand, and evaluate health-related information from electronic sources. The level of eHL shows whether the public can access and process basic health information or use health services provided through electronic means. This article is focused on presenting the importance of eHL in tasks performed by nursing students and nurses. We present the concept of eHL, describe methods of measuring it, and discuss factors determining its level. The study is based on a purposeful literature review.