The document summarizes an initiative in British Columbia, Canada called iCON that aims to engage patients with chronic diseases using information and communication technologies (ICT) in a multicultural approach. iCON provides culturally relevant health information in Chinese and Punjabi languages through live forums, a bilingual website, and plans to expand through new technologies. Evaluation found patients want health resources in their own language to facilitate self-management and empowerment. iCON aims to build on this work by continuing to engage communities and understand their needs.

1. Engaging Patients with Chronic
Diseases Using ICT:
A Multicultural Approach in B.C. Canada
World of Health IT Conference, Barcelona
March 17, 2010
Kendall Ho, MD FRCPC
Director, eHealth Strategy Office
Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia

2. If you build it, will they come?
Engaging
Public in
ICT Use in
CDM?
Dyersville, Iowa (filming of “Field of Dreams”)

3. Engaging Public: Chronic Diseases
• Accurate & quality health information
• Enable self-care & health partnerships
• Impact on chronic disease management
• Health consumers & health professionals
• Between generations & care givers
• Peer to peer
3

4. British Columbia,
Canada
Home Language:
English 51%
Serving multicultural public? Chinese 21.6%
•Language marginalization Punjabi 8.2%
•Computer skills Korean 2.7%
•Hunger for health knowledge Filipino (Tagalog) 2%
Persian (Farsi) 1.7%
Vietnamese 1.3%
Spanish 1.2%

6. iCON: Goals
1. Provide access to culturally relevant health
information in Chinese language
2. Use multi-channel engagement to reach a
variety of community members’ needs/
preferences
3. Gather and incorporate data to ensure
community-driven content and format
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7. Health Forum, Vancouver
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8. Live Forum Component
• Chinese and South Asian doctors, nurses,
dietician, pharmacists…
• Diabetes: September 2007 (~700 attendees)
• Healthy Heart: April 2008 (~1000 attendees)
• Dementia: October 2008 (~700 attendees)
• Dementia: March 2009 (~750 attendees)
• Liver Disease: November 2009 (~1,450 attendees)
• Medical & university students
• Surveys, focus groups, interviews
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9. Web component
• Culturally appropriate and language translated:
• Traditional and simplified Chinese characters
• Punjabi
• Chronic disease management content:
• Symptoms
• Self-management Culturally relevant and
• Diet translated health resources
• Local resources
• Interactive feedback
• Online survey…

10. www.iconproject.org

11. Public Engagement - Highlights
• Over 95% of the surveys turned in first language
• Female 65% Male 35%
• Average 65 years (mid-30s to late 90s)
• 1/3 Patients
• 1/3 Interested in prevention
• 1/3 Caregivers

12. Findings: What does self care mean?
• Trying to make healthy choices but need culturally relevant resources
available in own language
• Becoming better informed so they will have to “use the system less”
• Having sufficient knowledge to be conversant with health professionals
• Helping family members care for themselves
Health info Sources:
“The problem with doctors is that Necessary Ingredient:
Culturally relevant
we only go for a check-up once,
•Doctors, HPs resources available
but our condition may•Newspapers, books in own language
change
before or after, even if we are well
•Internet (41%)
at our appointment…and he says
“ok” – we don’t know for sure….”

13. Findings: Personal Health Record
Good idea to keep own record? (Q#10)
Maybe No
10.6% 3.1%
DO YOU THINK IT IS A
GOOD IDEA TO KEEP A
RECORD OF YOUR OWN
HEALTH WITH YOU?
Yes
86.3%

14. Findings: Personal Health Record
• 75% see an advantage in electronic PHR
• 80% would like to learn electronic PHR
• 88% would like a template
Themes:
When a patient keeps his or her own record it
facilitates knowledge and self-management.
When both patient and physician keep a record it
facilitates comparison and validation of information.

15. Insights: Public Engagement Evaluation
• Common Desire: engaged, empowered, contribute
• Evaluation builds trust and partnerships
• Evaluation promotes authenticity, mutual
understanding
• Through engagement, evaluation can build capacity

16. iCON…What’s next?
 Digital Access through Web 2.0 Network (DAWN)
 Public Health Agency of Canada funded
 Reaching population in non-urban B.C.
 Videoconferencing, web/pod casting
 Blogs
 Youtube
 Wiki
 Smart phones
…

17. “Dizzy Gillespie”: lessons
• They're not particular about whether you're
playing a flatted fifth or a ruptured 129th as long
as they can dance to it. of
Essence
Engagement
• How do you know they like your music? If I got
their toes tapping, then I know I’ve got them
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18. Multicultural Engagement in ICT
• Build content to invite
• Build community to engage
• Build evaluation to understand
• Build personal tools to transform

19. Contact Information
eHealth Strategy Office
Faculty of Medicine, UBC, Vancouver, Canada
MISSION: IT to enable education, service,
research and knowledge translation
Kendall Ho: Director & Associate Professor, Emergency Medicine
Kendall.Ho@ubc.ca
www.eHealth.med.ubc.ca
Facebook: Kendall Ho

20. Thank-you to….
• Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research
• Technology Enabled Knowledge Translation Investigative Centre
• BC Ministry of Health
• Vancouver Coastal Health Authority
• Fraser Health Authority
• Public Health Agency of Canada
• Safeway Canada
• SUCCESS, Progressive Intercultural Community Services Society
• The many health professionals, students and community members
Project Team
• Francis Ho • Shinie Tan • Francisco Grajales III
• Kendall Ho • Janice Tian • Jasmin Abizadeh
• Jennifer Cordeiro • Elizabeth Stacy • Nelson Shen
• Noreen Kamal • Helen Novak Lauscher