Digital transitions in health content

The transition to digital is especially interesting when it comes to health content. The traditional (historical) world of health professionals involved bulky textbooks, verbose journal articles and printed guidelines that could easily go out of date without the user even realising.

Not so these days. As complex health content increasingly moves online, there are exciting opportunities to improve the way busy health professionals access information.

Imagine converting a large clinical practice guideline from print to digital. No need for users to carry around that heavy book anymore – they can access it on their phone. That important section that people always found hard to find in print? Try adjusting the information architecture to surface that content more easily online, or create a new entry point right from the home page. An update or change in practice recommendation that people need to know about? Flag it on all the relevant pages and push notifications to registered users so they’re always up to date.

Other features such as bookmarks, sophisticated search functions and query builders can make important information even more accessible to the people who need it quickly.

The advantages of online functionality, as well as improving health content readability, might be just what the doctor ordered.