Socioeconomic Disparities in Immersive Healthcare: Implications for Patient Experience and Engagement

Abstract

Purpose: The aim of the present study is to examine how socio-economic factors influence patient experience within healthcare contexts where immersive technologies and visualization-based tools are used during clinical procedures. The study specifically investigates whether these technologies lead to uniform improvements in understanding, engagement, as well as confidence across varied patient groups or whether the experience is different for various categories.

Methodology: The present study incorporates a descriptive, cross-sectional research design, which is based on the primary data collected from 265 patients. Among 200 responses selected after the process of data cleaning, 34 patients reported direct exposure to immersive or visual tools during consultation. Statistical techniques including descriptive analysis, Chi-square test, one-way ANOVA, and Pearson correlation were used to examine associations between socio-economic variables (age, education, and income) and key experiential outcomes.

Findings: The results of the study indicate that immersive technologies are generally perceived as beneficial; however, there is a difference in their effectiveness across different socio-economic groups. Education level significantly influences patient understanding, income level affects confidence in treatment decisions, and age impacts engagement during consultations. Furthermore, understanding, engagement, and confidence are strongly interrelated, which suggests that patient experience functions as a cohesive process.

Research Limitations/Implications: This study is limited by the relatively small number of patients who have used immersive tools, reflecting their limited use in clinical contexts. The findings of this study, therefore, indicate experiential patterns rather than broad generalizations. Future research should focus on larger samples with direct exposure to immersive technologies in clinical contexts.

Practical Implications: The findings suggest that healthcare providers should not adopt a one-size-fits-all approach when they are making use of immersive tools in clinical procedures. Instead, different strategies should be adapted based on the socio-economic background, digital familiarity, and comfort levels of patients, in order to ensure more inclusive and effective patient interaction.

Originality/Value: This study extends the concept of the digital divide from access to technology to differences in patient experience. The study highlights that the benefits of immersive technologies depend on how patients interpret and engage with them in clinical contexts.