Bridging the digital divide for diabetes care: affordability and adoptability of health technology in Pakistan

Digital health technology (DHT) offers great promise for revolutionizing healthcare delivery in limited-resource settings such as Pakistan due to existing challenges, including low infrastructure, scarcity of resources, and digital partitioning. The purpose of this study was to explore the affordability and adoption status of health technology among diabetic patients in Pakistan. A cross-sectional descriptive approach was employed, and primary data were collected via questionnaires from 600 diabetes patients from different areas of Pakistan. The use of a random sampling technique enabled collection from different geographical areas, leading to the recruitment of a broad range among the diabetic population. The descriptive analysis was performed via SPSS 23, and Excel 16 was used to categorize the data into different patterns/trends concerning DHT awareness, usage, and affordability. The results reveal that 65% of the population is aware of DHT, and this high awareness has translated into practical usage at a rate of approximately 58%, illustrating additional barriers to adoption beyond simple knowledge, namely, costs and perceived utility. Additionally, 60% indicated that they could not afford DHT, and only 36.1% reported that they had health insurance. The study also noted variability in DHT use, with blood glucose meters and insulin pens being the most common devices used. There is a significant willingness to adopt DHT (97%), although this comes with a range of challenges. This study underscores the need to address the digital divide in Pakistan by improving affordability, access, and support for DHT. Bridging these gaps could enhance healthcare access and quality, particularly for managing chronic conditions such as diabetes. Effective public policies and initiatives are crucial to promoting DHT adoption and ensuring equitable healthcare delivery across the country. The study underscores the main issues that need to be addressed in Pakistan if we want an improvement in the affordability, access, and support of DHT. Filling these gaps could improve access to healthcare overall and stimulate the management of chronic conditions, such as diabetes. Ensuring this, along with effective public policies and initiatives, is essential for the adoption of DHTs to spread evenly across all the states of our country.