Health Literacy

“Understanding health information is everyone's right. For patients, it means being able to follow instructions from a doctor, nurse or pharmacist; manage a chronic illness; and/or take medication properly. For health care practitioners, it is about helping patients understand and act on health care information” [Pfizer, 2004]

Information Literacy is …

...a set of abilities enabling individuals to "recognize when information is needed and have the ability to locate, evaluate, and use effectively the needed information." [American Library Association, 1989]

Health Literacy is …

”...the degree to which individuals have the capacity to obtain, process, and understand basic health information and services needed to make appropriate health decisions.”

Source: Healthy People 2010. To view the entire document (76 pages) go to:

http://www.healthypeople.gov/Document/pdf/uih/2010uih.pdf

American Medical Association Foundation

In 1998, the American Medical Association (AMA) became the first national medical organization to adopt policy recognizing that limited patient literacy affects medical diagnosis and treatment.

Source:

http://www.ama-assn.org/ama/pub/about-ama/ama-foundation/our-programs/public-health/health-literacy-program.shtml

AMA Health Literacy Kits can be purchased through the AMA and includes:

• an instructional video on DVD and CD-ROM (also available on VHS*)
• an in-depth manual for clinicians (PDF)
• Continuing Medical Education credit
• additional resources for education and involvement

The Medical Library Association (MLA) defines health information literacy as:

"the set of abilities needed to: recognize a health information need; identify likely information sources and use them to retrieve relevant information; assess the quality of the information and its applicability to a specific situation; and analyze, understand, and use the information to make good health decisions."

Source: http://www.mlanet.org/resources/healthlit/define.html

MLA's health information literacy resources: More>>> 

Health Literacy Universal Precautions Toolkit

" The toolkit offers primary care practices a way to assess their services for health literacy considerations, raise awareness of the entire staff, and work on specific areas."

Source: The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

http://www.ahrq.gov/qual/literacy

Center for Literacy and Disability Studies

The Center’s mission is to promote literacy and communication for individuals of all ages with disabilities.

http://www.med.unc.edu/ahs/clds/

Need more useful Health Literacy sites?

Below are some helpful resources selected by the Marianjoy Medical Library staff:

• Health Literacy Studies
  Harvard School of Public Health

• Health Literacy Studies Resources
  Harvard School of Public Health
  In this section, you will find full-text resources particularly important in applying health literacy to your work
• Health Literacy
  MedlinePlus, A service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine
• Health Literacy
  U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
• Health Literacy Improvement
  U.S. Department of Health & Human Services' Office of Disease Prevention & Health Promotion. Provides links to government resources, reports and research, and tools for improving health literacy
• Pfizer Principles for Clear Health Communication
  This .PDF file handbook helps writers and designers make materials that are easy to read and understand. It provides an extensive list of medical terms and then suggests alternative, easier-to-understand terminology for consumers