Published by: Katie Reid on 7/1/2011 6:38:13 PM
How many times have you gone to the doctor and felt like you didn’t understand a single thing that he or she said to you about the care you needed? I can speak from experience that it has happened to me several times despite working in and having an in depth knowledge of the health care industry. Health literacy is a growing problem in the United States, not only for patients, but also the clinicians serving them. $0
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When patients are faced with complex information that their doctors give them concerning their health and treatment options, they may have difficulty understanding that information, understanding the benefits and risks, and interpreting the test results. According to findings from the 1992 Adult Literacy Survey, adults with low literacy are more likely to be low-income, have lower educational attainment, lack health care insurance, and be of a racial and/or ethnic minority. Additionally, adults with low literacy were more likely to have health conditions that limit their activities, be non-compliant with medications or care instructions, and experience medication errors. Health literacy can also impact the health care treatment decisions a clinician may make for their patients. $0
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Last year, the US Department of Health and Human Services released the National Action Plan to Improve Health Literacy, a strategic planning tool with broad goals and strategies that can be used in every sector of society that is responsible for providing health information or health services. The tool allows all organizations, large and small, to make their own action plan to improve health literacy for their target population. For safety net hospitals across the country, like members of NAPH, this tool is a valuable resource for improving health literacy among the most vulnerable patients. This month, to celebrate the one year anniversary of the Action Plan to Improve Health Literacy, the CDC has set up a blog where you can go to learn more about the Action Plan, as well as read about stories of the Action Plan’s implementation out in the field. To learn more about the Action Plan or to read the blog, please visit http://blogs.cdc.gov/healthliteracy/?source=govdelivery. $0