Health Literacy Tips

The Institute of Medicine defines health literacy as “the degree to which individuals can obtain, process, and understand the basic information and services they need to make appropriate health decisions.” Studies show that health literacy is a strong predictor of health status. Inadequate health literacy can lead to numerous negative effects on an individual’s health and well-being, including poor self-care, increased utilization of health services, and decreased likelihood of receiving preventive care and services. Poor communication with patients also contributes to reduced patient satisfaction and engagement. Health information can be confusing even for those with advanced literacy skills.

How are health care providers making health care information easier to grasp?

There are many ways a provider can offer health care information to a patient to ensure understanding, depending on which type of learner you are.

●Visual learners — Learn best by looking at pictures, videos or being shown how to do something. The information they are explaining to you can sound confusing. Visuals can help you understand your symptoms, diagnosis or prescription instructions better.

●Auditory learners — Learn best by hearing information, discussion, and stories that repeat information.

●Kinesthetic learners — Learn best by "doing", hands on, activity.

Information that is presented in all three ways provides the learner with the most opportunity and the greatest retention.

This kind of confusion is understandable, but may also be avoidable if we take some extra care with our communication with patients and family caregivers. There are a number of ways care providers can improve their communication, to help patients and families better understand health information. Here are some suggestions:

●Ask open-ended questions to assess the patient’s understanding of written materials, including prescription labels.

●Use the Teach Back communication method to determine if a patient has understood your instructions and can repeat the information in their own words.

●Use so called “Show Back” when teaching a patient to use a device or perform a particular task to demonstrate correct use.

●Hand your patient written material upside down while discussing it, and observe whether they turn it right side up.

●Use simple language. Avoid complicated medical terminology or jargon. Use common, simple words to be as clear as possible and minimize the risk of misunderstanding. For example:

Say “swallow” instead of “take”

Say “harmful” instead of “adverse”

Say “belly” instead of “abdomen”

●Speak more slowly when providing instructions. Be respectful and clear without being patronizing.

●Use graphics and pictures instead of long written instructions.

●Provide information at an appropriate grade level.

Health literacy includes numeracy skills. For instance, calculating cholesterol and blood sugar levels, measuring medications, and understanding nutrition labels all require math skills. Choosing between health plans or comparing prescription drug coverage requires calculating premiums, copays, and deductibles. In addition to basic literacy skills, health literacy requires knowledge of health topics. People with limited health literacy often lack knowledge or have misinformation about the body as well as the nature and causes of disease. Without this knowledge, they may not understand the relationship between lifestyle factors such as diet and exercise and various health outcomes.