Narratives of Life: Understanding the Viability of Digital Storytelling as a Breast Cancer Patient-Centred Care Tool for a Caring Future in EU-27 Countries

The present study addresses the viability of digital storytelling in Patient-Centred Care as a contributing tool to psychological wellbeing and social cohesion in European Union 27 countries (EU-27). Storytelling is regarded as an important tool for medical practice, promoting the development of coping mechanisms and empowerment in patients. The future of healthcare is increasingly digital, moving towards new paradigms of care that benefit the patient through customized and dedicated tools, allowing for tailored health instruments that may give an overall increase in health improvement and maintenance, through support, monitorization or at distance care. In this context, digital storytelling arises as a natural result from the adjustment of a widely used and approved method to a new technology, with recognized benefits of powerful engagement. Through data analysis on digital access, digital literacy, and digital skills among population in EU-27 countries, we focus on the viability of storytelling through digital tools regarding social-economic factors. Analysis is narrowed to women, since our main field of work is on female breast cancer. Data analysis shows the existence of a gap on digital literacy between EU-27 countries, suggesting a correlation between patient context and effectiveness and usage possibility of digital tools. Although digital storytelling may represent the future as a contributing tool to psychological wellbeing, the difference between and within EU-27 countries shows that there are still fundamental issues concerning digital literacy and full accessibility that must be addressed before this tool may assume a main role in detriment of analogical approaches, regarding equity and democratic access to healthcare.