Monitoring Surveys in the Context of Covid-19, Published in Belgium and France, in the Light of Health Democracy

Introduction: The management of a pandemic, such as COVID-19, requires the full participation of citizens. This recent situation has revealed the undermining of user participation in the decision-making process. Thus, this study aims to assess the involvement of users in the design and administration of surveys for health crisis monitoring and to stimulate reflection on information processes shared upstream during the decision-making process.
Methods: A literature search was conducted on population monitoring surveys published during the first containment period in Belgium and France between April and May 2020. The selected studies were first analyzed according to a reading grid based on the criteria proposed by the World Health Organization (WHO) for monitoring populations and supplemented by data from a descriptive analysis of the selected studies. Second, with the objective of specifically evaluating the involvement of users in monitoring surveys, this study evaluated the surveys according to the following parameters: content of a study based on themes presented in surveys; inclusion of health literacy (HL); and factors of commitment of the respondents to the survey.
Results: A total of 45 studies were selected for final analysis. The majority of the surveys focused on the effect of COVID-19 on wellbeing. Furthermore, analysis indicated that, in summary, the HL of people concerned as well as the involvement of respondents is poorly considered, which remains limited in terms of the design and administration of the surveys.
Discussion: Although the principles of health democracy seemed to have been established, the exceptional regime induced by the epidemic overlooked the observance of such principles. This result indicates the need to reconsider the participation of citizens as real partners in care, including health crisis management.