What is Health Literacy?

Health Literacy Literacy refers to a set of skills including reading, writing, speaking, listening, and using numbers. The US Institute of Medicine defines these same skills, plus background knowledge, as necessary to use the healthcare system.  Parents pass on their literacy skills, whatever they are, to their children.  When parents lack these skills, it greatly increases the risk of reading and learning difficulties for their children.

Literacy skills are the foundation for functional health literacy – what a person’s literacy skills enable them to do in the health arena.  So, simply stated, health literacy is the capacity to function in the health arena—that is, in the healthcare system and in health contexts at home.  A mother’s health literacy skills determine her ability to benefit from your program, healthcare and community services.

Resources:
Bennett IM, Robbins S, Haecker, T (Sept 2003) Screening for Low Literacy Among Adult Caregivers o Pediatric Patients. Family Medicine, 35(8):585-90
Nielson-Bohlman L, Panszer AM, Hamlin B, Kindig DA (2004) Editors. Health Literacy: A Prescription to End Confusion. Institute of Medicine, National Academies Press, Washington DC (www.iom.edu)

Further Definitions on Health Literacy

Introduction

Definitions matter in subtle but important ways. They can directly influence funding streams, and thus create research, practice, and publication communities which work to self-reinforce and often 'circle the wagons' when encountering new or opposing ideas. That can validate -or just slow down progress toward- best practices and new solutions. Coming to a standard definition is one of the current issues for the health literacy field.

Most health literacy research in the last 15 years focused on the clinical setting and often framed low health literacy as a deficiency disease. Richer, more inclusive, less top-down definitions cast health literacy as a multi-dimensional concept that includes public health issues and sees health literacy the responsibility of health services providers, health educators, policy makers, patients, and the public. Here you will find a selection of health literacy definitions from various perspectives followed by characteristics of a health literate person.

Health Literacy Definitions

Healthy People 2010
[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: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Healthy People 2010

Ian Bennett, MD
[Health Literacy is] ability to function in the health arena.
Source: Bennett IM, Robbins S, Haecker T (2004) Screening for Low Literacy among Adult Caregivers of Pediatric Patients Family Medicine 35(8) 585-590

World Health Organization
Health literacy implies the achievement of a level of knowledge, personal skills and confidence to take action to improve personal and community health by changing personal lifestyles and living conditions. Thus, health literacy is more than being able to read pamphlets and make appointments. By improving people’s access to health information and their capacity to use it, health literacy is critical to empowerment.
Source: World Health Organization 1998

Strategies that increase access to information and build capacity to use it can improve health literacy, decision-making, risk perception and lead to informed action by individuals and organizations.
Source: World Health Organization 2000

Renkert and Nutbeam (Australila)
Maternal health literacy refers to the cognitive and social skills that determine the motivation and ability of women to gain access to, understand and use information in ways that promote and maintain their health and that of their children.
Source: Renkert S and Nutbeam D (2001 Opportunities to improve maternal health literacy through antenatal education: an exploratory study Health Promotion International 16(4):381-8

Nutbeam’s Levels of Literacy
Basic/functional literacy. This is considered to be equivalent to the narrow `traditional' definition. It is characterized by `sufficient basic skills in reading and writing to be able to function effectively in everyday situations'.

• Communicative/interactive literacy. `More advanced cognitive and literacy skills which, together with social skills, can be used to actively participate in everyday activities, to extract information and derive meaning from different forms of communication, and to apply new information to changing circumstances.'
  Critical literacy. `More advanced cognitive skills which, together with social skills, can be applied to critically analyse information, and to use this information to exert greater control over life events and situations'. Nutbeam (1998) Health promotion glossary. Health Promotion International, 13, 349–364. [Full Text] Pfizer [Health Literacy is] the ability to read, understand, and act on health information.
  Source: Pfizer, 2002

Medical Library Association
Health Information Literacy is 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: The Medical Library Association Task Force on Health Information Literacy July 23, 2003

Zarcadoolas, Pleasant & Greer
Health literacy is the evolving skills, and competencies that people use to find, comprehend, evaluate, and use health information and concepts to make informed choices, reduce health risks, and increase quality of life.
Source: Zarcadoolas, C., Pleasant, A. and Greer, D. (In press) Health Literacy: An Introductory Textbook. Johns Hopkins University Press, Philadelphia, PA.

To add a definition, send it along with the source to webmother@beginningsguides.net

    
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