DEAHL Baltic – Digital Empowerment for Active Healthy Living in the Baltic Sea Region
The Finnish Centre for Client and Patient Safety is participating in the DEAHL Baltic project, which is co-funded by the European Union.
The project is financed through the Interreg Baltic Sea Region programme and will run from March 2025 to February 2028.
The EU strategically supports digitalisation in the health and social care sector. According to the EU’s Digital Decade e-Health target, the goal is for every EU citizen to have access to their electronic health data by 2030. However, if citizens lack digital health literacy — the ability to search, find, understand and use electronic health information and apply the knowledge to address their own health issues — health inequalities may increase. This reflects broader system-level challenges that affect the responsiveness and quality of public services.
The IDEAHL project (2022–2024), funded by the Horizon Europe programme, demonstrated that healthcare professionals and their organisations also lack digital health literacy. By improving this literacy, professionals can enhance the accessibility and usability of digital services and support clients and patients in using them. This is especially important for vulnerable groups such as the elderly and immigrants.
Project Objective
The aim of the project is to strengthen the capacity of healthcare organisations and professionals to provide digital services that citizens can easily find, understand, and use to manage their health.
Summary of DEAHL Baltic project work packages:
- Development of a training and information package on digital health literacy (Competence Building Package), based on best practices identified in the IDEAHL project and research conducted during DEAHL Baltic.
- Piloting, evaluating, and adjusting the training and information package.
- Implementing and transferring the training and information package for the benefit of citizens across the Baltic Sea region.
Partners in the DEAHL Baltic project come from Finland, Sweden, Poland, Latvia, Germany, and Denmark. In addition to the Finnish Centre for Client and Patient Safety, Seinäjoki University of Applied Sciences (SeAMK) is also participating from Finland. Asiakas- ja potilasturvallisuuskeskuksen lisäksi Seinäjoen ammattikorkeakoulu (SeAMK).
You can visit the project’s website via this link..
For more information
Liisa Keikkonen, planner, liisa.keikkonen(a)ovph.fi
Sini Eloranta, lead specialist, sini.eloranta(a)ovph.fi
12.5.2025 Blog post: Improving Digital Health Literacy in the Baltic Sea Region