Towards Equitable Care and Health with Everyday Consumer Technology (TECH)

Everyday consumer technologies, such as smartphones, social media platforms, and video conferencing tools, play an increasingly vital role in how people access and engage with health information, services, and care (Hung et al., 2013). These tools have become central to navigating health systems and enable people to seek out health resources, communicate with providers, and manage their well-being in digitally mediated environments (Olive et al., 2024). For culturally and linguistically diverse (CaLD) migrants with disabilities, such technologies hold the potential to enhance health literacy, support informed decision-making, and facilitate self-management of health conditions by offering access to health information and services in linguistically and culturally appropriate formats (Whitehead et al., 2023). 

However, this potential is often undermined by digital infrastructures that are not designed to accommodate the diverse needs of these populations. Everyday consumer technologies often lack accessibility features, multilingual interfaces, and culturally relevant content. Consequently, CaLD migrants with disabilities face significant barriers when attempting to access public health information, navigate digital health platforms, and engage with online health services (Evans et al., 2022; van Kessel et al., 2022). These challenges can limit their ability to make informed choices about their health, interact effectively with healthcare systems, and participate fully in digital health environments.

In Canada, where immigrants represent the fastest-growing segment of the population (Statistics Canada, 2022), the increasing reliance on digital platforms to deliver health services raises critical equity concerns. Reflecting this, Canada expressed its commitment to multiculturalism and accessibility, however, its digital infrastructure remains predominantly oriented toward Anglo- and French-speaking, and able-bodied users (Government of Canada, 2024a, 2024b). This places an added burden on CaLD migrants with disabilities, who already face systemic barriers when using everyday consumer technologies. Accordingly, the lack of inclusive design continues to restrict how they engage with, interpret, and act on health information and services (MacPherson, 2023).

These inequities are further compounded by algorithmic biases embedded in artificial intelligence (AI) systems that increasingly underpin health-related technologies. AI models  often rely on datasets that do not reflect the realities of equity-deserving populations, such as CaLD migrants with disabilities (Pasquale, 2015). Thus, these systems risk reproducing or exacerbating racial, linguistic, cultural, and ableist biases, further contributing to unjust and unequal health outcomes and entrenching systemic inequities in access to care (Obermeyer et al., 2019).

Acknowledging the systemic barriers that CaLD migrants with disabilities in the Canadian digital health context, and the need to address intersecting social identities (e.g., race, disability) alongside systemic forms of oppression (e.g., racism, ableism) (Crenshaw, 1989; Robertson et al., 2022), this project applies an intersectionality-informed approach to explore how CaLD migrants with disabilities use everyday consumer technologies to access health information and services. In doing so, the project aims to understand their experiences of navigating digital health environments and to identify barriers and opportunities for greater inclusion within an increasingly digitized healthcare landscape.

Phase 1: Identifying digital health barriers with community advocates

The purpose of Phase 1 is to identify key issues related to everyday consumer technology use in the context of health, from the perspectives of community leaders and disability and migrant advocates. This will be achieved through participatory workshops, where discussions will centre on barriers, opportunities, and lived experiences of technology use. Insights from this phase will inform the development of focus group and interview guides in Phase 2.

Phase 2: Exploring digital health engagement among CaLD migrants with disabilities

Phase 2 aims to explore how CaLD migrants with disabilities use, adapt to, and perceive everyday digital technologies in relation to general health and digital health services specifically. This will involve conducting focus groups and one-on-one interviews with participants. Findings from this phase will guide the design of the interactive user documentation activities in Phase 3.

Phase 3: Real-life documentation of everyday technology use

The purpose of Phase 3 is to collect real-life data on how participants engage with everyday consumer technologies in navigating health. Building on lessons from the ADDEPT project in Australia (Soldatic et al., under review), this phase will incorporate both self-documentation and interactive user documentation methods, including follow-up interviews and peer discussions. This approach aims to generate rich qualitative insights while reducing participant burden by offering multiple ways to express experiences with technology.

Phase 4: Co-creation of AI-generated digital stories

Phase 4 focuses on translating the findings from Phase 3 into accessible, creative outputs. Participants will engage in digital media workshops and training to co-create AI-generated e-books that illustrate their lived experiences. These e-books will serve as tools for advocacy, public engagement, and education for healthcare providers and other stakeholders.

Phase 5: Co-designing inclusive resources for policy and practice

In Phase 5, findings from all previous phases will be synthesized into a policy and practice resource toolkit aimed at service providers, policymakers, technology stakeholders, and healthcare professionals. This phase will culminate in a one-day forum involving CaLD migrants with disabilities (from Phases 2–4), service providers, healthcare workers, and representatives from the tech industry. The forum will collaboratively develop accessible and inclusive resources that support more equitable engagement with CaLD migrants with disabilities in the context of everyday technology and health navigation.

Goals and Implications

By applying an intersectionality-informed, participatory approach, this project will generate rich, real-world insights into how CaLD migrants with disabilities use and engage with everyday consumer technologies in health contexts. The findings will inform inclusive design practices in health and technology systems, promote culturally and linguistically responsive services, and support policy development to address digital health inequities. Ultimately, this project contributes to a more equitable, user-centred digital health ecosystem where the needs, voices, and knowledge of CaLD migrants with disabilities are acknowledged and actively shape the future of accessible healthcare in Canada.