earticle

영어

This study aimed to investigate the awareness and usage experiences of digital healthcare among health-related students, and to examine how differences in awareness levels were associated with attitudes, expectations, concerns, application usage frequency, satisfaction, and perceptions. A total of 363 health-related students participated in this cross-sectional survey. Participants’ general characteristics, awareness of digital healthcare, and usage experiences were assessed through a structured questionnaire. Of the participants, 44.1% recognized digital healthcare, while 55.9% did not. Compared with the non-awareness group, the awareness group reported significantly higher positive responses in healthcare perception domains, benefits for health management, future usage intention, patient recommendations, perceived quality, expectations for future activation, and views on national health promotion (p<.05). Regarding expectations and concerns, the awareness group showed significantly higher expectations for improving medical accessibility, strengthening chronic disease management, and increasing clinical efficiency, as well as greater concerns about personal data breaches and system malfunctions (p<.05). Among participants with usage experience, the most common application type was blood glucose and blood pressure management, whereas exercise and rehabilitation applications were not reported (n=0). In terms of frequency, most participants reported using digital healthcare once or twice per week, while a smaller proportion used it more often or not at all. Satisfaction was generally favorable, with positive responses outnumbering negative ones. This study found that participants with prior awareness of digital healthcare reported more favorable attitudes, higher usage frequency, and greater satisfaction compared to those without awareness, although overall utilization remained limited. These findings suggest the need for experiential education, the establishment of reliable user-centered systems, and the development of underutilized services such as physical activity, exercise, and rehabilitation.