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Han YY, Gutwein A, Apter A, Celedón JC. Health literacy and asthma: An update. J Allergy Clin Immunol 2024; 153:1241-1251. [PMID: 38135010 PMCID: PMC11070295 DOI: 10.1016/j.jaci.2023.12.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2023] [Revised: 12/09/2023] [Accepted: 12/15/2023] [Indexed: 12/24/2023]
Abstract
The US Department of Health and Human Services has defined health literacy (HL) as the degree to which individuals have the capacity to obtain, process, and understand basic health information and services needed to make appropriate health decisions. Structural and social determinants of health lead to low HL in approximately 36% of adults in the United States, where this condition is most prevalent in racial and ethnic minorities, economically disadvantaged communities, and immigrants with limited English proficiency. In turn, low HL can worsen asthma outcomes through direct effects (eg, nonadherence to or incorrect use of medications) and indirect effects (eg, an unhealthy diet leading to obesity, a risk factor for asthma morbidity). The purpose of this update is to examine evidence from studies on low HL and health and asthma outcomes published in the last 12 years, identify approaches to improve HL and reduce health disparities in asthma, and discuss future directions for research in this area under the conceptual framework of a socioecological model that illustrates the multifactorial and interconnected complexity of this public health issue at different levels.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yueh-Ying Han
- Division of Pulmonary Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pa
| | - Amanda Gutwein
- Division of Pulmonary Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pa
| | - Andrea Apter
- Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine of the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pa
| | - Juan C Celedón
- Division of Pulmonary Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pa.
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Dijkman EM, ter Brake WWM, Drossaert CHC, Doggen CJM. Assessment Tools for Measuring Health Literacy and Digital Health Literacy in a Hospital Setting: A Scoping Review. Healthcare (Basel) 2023; 12:11. [PMID: 38200917 PMCID: PMC10778720 DOI: 10.3390/healthcare12010011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2023] [Revised: 12/11/2023] [Accepted: 12/14/2023] [Indexed: 01/12/2024] Open
Abstract
Assessment of (digital) health literacy in the hospital can raise staff awareness and facilitate tailored communication, leading to improved health outcomes. Assessment tools should ideally address multiple domains of health literacy, fit to the complex hospital context and have a short administration time, to enable routine assessment. This review aims to create an overview of tools for measuring (digital) health literacy in hospitals. A search in Scopus, PubMed, WoS and CINAHL, following PRISMA guidelines, generated 7252 hits; 251 studies were included in which 44 assessment tools were used. Most tools (57%) were self-reported and 27% reported an administration time of <5 min. Almost all tools addressed the domain 'understanding' (98%), followed by 'access' (52%), 'apply' (50%), 'appraise' (32%), 'numeracy' (18%), and 'digital' (18%). Only four tools were frequently used: the Newest Vital Sign (NVS), the Short Test of Functional Health Literacy for Adults ((S)TOFHLA), the Brief Health Literacy Screener (BHLS), and the Health Literacy Questionnaire (HLQ). While the NVS and BHLS have a low administration time, they cover only two domains. HLQ covers the most domains: access, understanding, appraise, and apply. None of these four most frequently used tools measured digital skills. This review can guide health professionals in choosing an instrument that is feasible in their daily practice, and measures the required domains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eline M. Dijkman
- Department of Health Technology and Services Research (HTSR), Technical Medical Centre, University of Twente, 7522 NB Enschede, The Netherlands; (E.M.D.)
- Department of Surgery, Isala Hospital, 8025 AB Zwolle, The Netherlands
| | - Wouter W. M. ter Brake
- Department of Health Technology and Services Research (HTSR), Technical Medical Centre, University of Twente, 7522 NB Enschede, The Netherlands; (E.M.D.)
| | | | - Carine J. M. Doggen
- Department of Health Technology and Services Research (HTSR), Technical Medical Centre, University of Twente, 7522 NB Enschede, The Netherlands; (E.M.D.)
- Clinical Research Center, Rijnstate Hospital, 6815 AD Arnhem, The Netherlands
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Khatiwada B, Rajbhandari B, Mistry SK, Parsekar S, Yadav UN. Prevalence of and factors associated with health literacy among people with Noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) in South Asian countries: A systematic review. CLINICAL EPIDEMIOLOGY AND GLOBAL HEALTH 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cegh.2022.101174] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
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Poureslami I, FitzGerald JM, Tregobov N, Goldstein RS, Lougheed MD, Gupta S. Health literacy in asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) care: a narrative review and future directions. Respir Res 2022; 23:361. [PMID: 36529734 PMCID: PMC9760543 DOI: 10.1186/s12931-022-02290-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2021] [Accepted: 12/09/2022] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Respiratory self-care places considerable demands on patients with chronic airways disease (AD), as they must obtain, understand and apply information required to follow their complex treatment plans. If clinical and lifestyle information overwhelms patients' HL capacities, it reduces their ability to self-manage. This review outlines important societal, individual, and healthcare system factors that influence disease management and outcomes among patients with asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)-the two most common ADs. For this review, we undertook a comprehensive literature search, conducted reference list searches from prior HL-related publications, and added insights from international researchers and scientists with an interest in HL. We identified methodological limitations in currently available HL measurement tools in respiratory care. We also summarized the issues contributing to low HL and system-level cultural incompetency that continue to be under-recognized in AD management and contribute to suboptimal patient outcomes. Given that impaired HL is not commonly recognized as an important factor in AD care, we propose a three-level patient-centered model (strategies) designed to integrate HL considerations, with the goal of enabling health systems to enhance service delivery to meet the needs of all AD patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Iraj Poureslami
- grid.417243.70000 0004 0384 4428Division of Respiratory Medicine, Centre for Lung Health, Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute, University of British Columbia, 716-828 West 10th Avenue, Vancouver, BC V5Z 1M9 Canada ,Canadian Multicultural Health Promotion Society (CMHPS), Vancouver, BC Canada
| | - J. Mark FitzGerald
- grid.417243.70000 0004 0384 4428Division of Respiratory Medicine, Centre for Lung Health, Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute, University of British Columbia, 716-828 West 10th Avenue, Vancouver, BC V5Z 1M9 Canada
| | - Noah Tregobov
- grid.417243.70000 0004 0384 4428Division of Respiratory Medicine, Centre for Lung Health, Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute, University of British Columbia, 716-828 West 10th Avenue, Vancouver, BC V5Z 1M9 Canada ,grid.17091.3e0000 0001 2288 9830Faculty of Medicine, Vancouver-Fraser Medical Program, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC Canada
| | - Roger S. Goldstein
- grid.17063.330000 0001 2157 2938Department of Physical Therapy, Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada ,Respiratory Medicine, Westpark Healthcare Centre, Toronto, Canada ,grid.17063.330000 0001 2157 2938Department of Medicine, Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON Canada
| | - M. Diane Lougheed
- grid.410356.50000 0004 1936 8331Asthma Research Unit, Department of Medicine, Kingston Health Sciences Centre, Queen’s University, Kingston, ON Canada ,grid.418647.80000 0000 8849 1617Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences, Toronto, ON Canada
| | - Samir Gupta
- grid.415502.7Unity Health, Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute of St. Michael’s Hospital, Toronto, ON Canada ,grid.17063.330000 0001 2157 2938Division of Respirology, Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON Canada
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Kowatsch T, Schachner T, Harperink S, Barata F, Dittler U, Xiao G, Stanger C, V Wangenheim F, Fleisch E, Oswald H, Möller A. Conversational Agents as Mediating Social Actors in Chronic Disease Management Involving Health Care Professionals, Patients, and Family Members: Multisite Single-Arm Feasibility Study. J Med Internet Res 2021; 23:e25060. [PMID: 33484114 PMCID: PMC7929753 DOI: 10.2196/25060] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2020] [Revised: 11/19/2020] [Accepted: 01/22/2021] [Indexed: 02/02/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Successful management of chronic diseases requires a trustful collaboration between health care professionals, patients, and family members. Scalable conversational agents, designed to assist health care professionals, may play a significant role in supporting this collaboration in a scalable way by reaching out to the everyday lives of patients and their family members. However, to date, it remains unclear whether conversational agents, in such a role, would be accepted and whether they can support this multistakeholder collaboration. OBJECTIVE With asthma in children representing a relevant target of chronic disease management, this study had the following objectives: (1) to describe the design of MAX, a conversational agent-delivered asthma intervention that supports health care professionals targeting child-parent teams in their everyday lives; and (2) to assess the (a) reach of MAX, (b) conversational agent-patient working alliance, (c) acceptance of MAX, (d) intervention completion rate, (e) cognitive and behavioral outcomes, and (f) human effort and responsiveness of health care professionals in primary and secondary care settings. METHODS MAX was designed to increase cognitive skills (ie, knowledge about asthma) and behavioral skills (ie, inhalation technique) in 10-15-year-olds with asthma, and enables support by a health professional and a family member. To this end, three design goals guided the development: (1) to build a conversational agent-patient working alliance; (2) to offer hybrid (human- and conversational agent-supported) ubiquitous coaching; and (3) to provide an intervention with high experiential value. An interdisciplinary team of computer scientists, asthma experts, and young patients with their parents developed the intervention collaboratively. The conversational agent communicates with health care professionals via email, with patients via a mobile chat app, and with a family member via SMS text messaging. A single-arm feasibility study in primary and secondary care settings was performed to assess MAX. RESULTS Results indicated an overall positive evaluation of MAX with respect to its reach (49.5%, 49/99 of recruited and eligible patient-family member teams participated), a strong patient-conversational agent working alliance, and high acceptance by all relevant stakeholders. Moreover, MAX led to improved cognitive and behavioral skills and an intervention completion rate of 75.5%. Family members supported the patients in 269 out of 275 (97.8%) coaching sessions. Most of the conversational turns (99.5%) were conducted between patients and the conversational agent as opposed to between patients and health care professionals, thus indicating the scalability of MAX. In addition, it took health care professionals less than 4 minutes to assess the inhalation technique and 3 days to deliver related feedback to the patients. Several suggestions for improvement were made. CONCLUSIONS This study provides the first evidence that conversational agents, designed as mediating social actors involving health care professionals, patients, and family members, are not only accepted in such a "team player" role but also show potential to improve health-relevant outcomes in chronic disease management.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tobias Kowatsch
- Centre for Digital Health Interventions, Department of Management, Technology, and Economics, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
- Future Health Technologies Programme, Campus for Research Excellence and Technological Enterprise, Singapore-ETH Centre, Singapore, Singapore
- Centre for Digital Health Interventions, Institute of Technology Management, University of St Gallen, St Gallen, Switzerland
| | - Theresa Schachner
- Centre for Digital Health Interventions, Department of Management, Technology, and Economics, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Samira Harperink
- Centre for Digital Health Interventions, Department of Management, Technology, and Economics, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Filipe Barata
- Centre for Digital Health Interventions, Department of Management, Technology, and Economics, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Ullrich Dittler
- Fakultät Digitale Medien, Campus Furtwangen, Hochschule Furtwangen University, Furtwangen, Germany
| | - Grace Xiao
- Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Catherine Stanger
- Center for Technology and Behavioral Health, Geisel School of Medicine, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH, United States
| | - Florian V Wangenheim
- Centre for Digital Health Interventions, Department of Management, Technology, and Economics, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
- Future Health Technologies Programme, Campus for Research Excellence and Technological Enterprise, Singapore-ETH Centre, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Elgar Fleisch
- Centre for Digital Health Interventions, Department of Management, Technology, and Economics, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
- Future Health Technologies Programme, Campus for Research Excellence and Technological Enterprise, Singapore-ETH Centre, Singapore, Singapore
- Centre for Digital Health Interventions, Institute of Technology Management, University of St Gallen, St Gallen, Switzerland
| | - Helmut Oswald
- Department of Child and Adolescent Health, Cantonal Hospital Winterthur, Winterthur, Switzerland
| | - Alexander Möller
- Division of Respiratory Medicine and Childhood Research Center, University Children's Hospital Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
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Shao S, Zhang H, Chen X, Xu X, Zhao Y, Wang M, Du J. Health education services utilization and its determinants among migrants: a cross-sectional study in urban-rural fringe areas of Beijing, China. BMC FAMILY PRACTICE 2021; 22:23. [PMID: 33453725 PMCID: PMC7811350 DOI: 10.1186/s12875-021-01368-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2020] [Accepted: 01/05/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Background Domestic migration poses a challenge for China as migrants have little access to preventive healthcare services and are vulnerable to certain risks and diseases. This research sought to unveil and explore the determinant factors associated with health education utilization as a key aspect in basic public health services for migrants in Beijing, China. Methods A sample of 863 inter-provincial migrants, 18 years old and above, was selected by three-stage stratified cluster sampling method in urban-rural fringe areas of Beijing during 2016 to 2017. Face-to-face structured interviews were conducted in the questionnaire survey. The effects of the explanatory variables on health education utilization from predisposing, enabling, health behaviors and need variables were used to demonstrate by Anderson health service utilization model. Results The study revealed that 61.6% migrants desired to receive health education, while only 53.8% of them received in the past year. There were differences in the utilization and needs of health education among the migrants in different ages and genders. Many migrants desired to gain access to various types of health education information from the internet. Chi-square independence test lists such major determinant factors in migrants whole health education as age, “Hukou” registration system, marital status, education level, long-term residence plan in Beijing, one or more children in Beijing, employment status, housing source, average daily working time, exercises, health knowledge, smoking, self-rated health. The binary logistic regression indicates that the migrants with younger age, high education level, one or more children in Beijing, exercises and good self-rated health were more likely to receive whole health education. The results also show that average daily working time of enabling variables and exercise of health behavior variables were the strong and consistent determinants of three types of health education utilization, including communicable, non-communicable and occupational diseases. Conclusion Gaps exist between the needs and utilization in health education and more attention should be given to the migrants with heavy workload and low education level. Feasible policies and measures, such as multiple health information channels, should be vigorously implemented to ensure equitable and easy access to health education for migrants. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12875-021-01368-1.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shuang Shao
- School of General Practice and Continuing Education, Capital Medical University, Beijing, 100069, China
| | - Huirong Zhang
- Hospice Care Ward, Beijing geriatric hospital, Beijing, 100095, China
| | - Xiaolei Chen
- School of General Practice and Continuing Education, Capital Medical University, Beijing, 100069, China
| | - Xiaojingyuan Xu
- School of General Practice and Continuing Education, Capital Medical University, Beijing, 100069, China
| | - Yali Zhao
- School of General Practice and Continuing Education, Capital Medical University, Beijing, 100069, China
| | - Meirong Wang
- School of General Practice and Continuing Education, Capital Medical University, Beijing, 100069, China
| | - Juan Du
- School of General Practice and Continuing Education, Capital Medical University, Beijing, 100069, China.
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Lai HR, Wu DM, Lee PH, Jhang YS. Health Literacy Teaching Beliefs, Attitudes, Efficacy, and Intentions of Middle School Health and Physical Education Teachers. THE JOURNAL OF SCHOOL HEALTH 2018; 88:350-358. [PMID: 29609218 DOI: 10.1111/josh.12615] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2016] [Revised: 07/18/2017] [Accepted: 01/06/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Health education (HE) courses in schools are vital paths for improving teenagers' health literacy. HE and physical education (PE) teachers lead HE courses, and their teaching intentions and competency influence the effectiveness of the courses and the ability to promote students' health literacy. This study attempted to understand HE and PE teachers' health literacy teaching intentions and professional competency and to investigate their relationships. METHODS This study adopted a cross-sectional design. A questionnaire survey was administered to 906 middle school HE and PE teachers in Taiwan by mail, and 545 provided valid data with consent. RESULTS Participants had a favorable health literacy (47.78/50), positive health literacy teaching beliefs and attitudes, and acceptable efficacy. They intended to implement health literacy instruction within the subsequent year. Teaching beliefs, attitudes, and efficacy were all positively correlated with intentions (all p < .001). Demographic variables, health literacy, and teaching beliefs, attitudes, and efficacy explained 33.5% of the variance of teaching intentions. CONCLUSION Teaching beliefs, attitudes, and efficacy were crucial predictors of health literacy teaching intentions. To improve students' health literacy, educational authorities and schools should pay attention to HE and PE teachers' intentions and vital factors, thereby enhancing teachers' willingness to perform health literacy instruction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hsiang-Ru Lai
- Department of Health Promotion and Health Education, National Taiwan Normal University, 162 Ho-Ping East Road, Section 1, Taipei 106, Taiwan
| | - Der-Min Wu
- School of Public Health, National Defense Medical Center, 161 Minquan East Road, Section 6, Taipei 114, Taiwan
| | - Pi-Hsia Lee
- School of Nursing, College of Nursing, Taipei Medical University, 250 Wuxing Street, Taipei 11031, Taiwan
| | - Yu-Siang Jhang
- Department of Health Promotion and Health Education, National Taiwan Normal University, 162 Ho-Ping East Road, Section 1, Taipei 106, Taiwan
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Kim K, Xue QL, Walton-Moss B, Nolan MT, Han HR. Decisional balance and self-efficacy mediate the association among provider advice, health literacy and cervical cancer screening. Eur J Oncol Nurs 2017; 32:55-62. [PMID: 29353633 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejon.2017.12.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2017] [Revised: 11/30/2017] [Accepted: 12/01/2017] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
PURPOSE Health literacy has emerged as a potential determinant of cancer screening, yet limited literature has investigated the pathways which health literacy influences Pap tests among immigrant women who experience a higher incidence of cervical cancer. This study aimed to test a health literacy-focused sociocognitive model which proposes motivational (knowledge, decisional balance) and volitional (self-efficacy) factors mediating the association between health literacy and triennial Pap tests. METHODS Using structural equation modeling, we conducted a secondary analysis of baseline data obtained from a randomized controlled trial to promote breast and cervical cancer screenings among 560 Korean American women 21-65 years of age. They were interviewed on demographics such as education and English proficiency, provider advice, health literacy, knowledge of cervical cancer, decisional balance for Pap tests, self-efficacy, and Pap test use. RESULTS Higher health literacy predicted high level of knowledge and high decisional balance score, and greater self-efficacy and then only decisional balance and self-efficacy affected Pap tests. High level of knowledge predicted Pap tests through its impact on the decisional balance score. Receiving provider advice both directly and indirectly predicted Pap tests through high level of health literacy, high level of decisional balance and greater self-efficacy. CONCLUSIONS Findings from this study suggest possible pathways through which provider advice and health literacy affect Pap tests. Interventions targeting immigrant women with limited English proficiency should consider skill-based approaches such as health literacy training, promoting patient-provider communications and emphasizing decisional balance and self-efficacy as potentially sustainable ways of promoting Pap tests.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kyounghae Kim
- Department of Community-Public Health, School of Nursing, Johns Hopkins University, 525 N Wolfe Street, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA.
| | - Qian-Li Xue
- School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University, 733 N Broadway, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - Benita Walton-Moss
- Department of Nursing, School of Social Work, University of Southern California, 1150 South Olive St. Suite T1100, Los Angeles, CA 90015, USA
| | - Marie T Nolan
- Department of Acute and Chronic Care, School of Nursing, Johns Hopkins University, 525 N Wolfe Street, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - Hae-Ra Han
- Department of Community-Public Health, School of Nursing, Johns Hopkins University, 525 N Wolfe Street, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
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Christy SM, Gwede CK, Sutton SK, Chavarria E, Davis SN, Abdulla R, Ravindra C, Schultz I, Roetzheim R, Meade CD. Health Literacy among Medically Underserved: The Role of Demographic Factors, Social Influence, and Religious Beliefs. JOURNAL OF HEALTH COMMUNICATION 2017; 22:923-931. [PMID: 29125435 PMCID: PMC6278594 DOI: 10.1080/10810730.2017.1377322] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/28/2023]
Abstract
The current study examined the sociodemographic and psychosocial variables that predicted being at risk for low health literacy among a population of racially and ethnically diverse patients accessing primary care services at community-based clinics. Participants (N = 416) were aged 50-75 years, currently not up-to-date with colorectal cancer (CRC) screening, at average CRC risk, and enrolled in a randomized controlled trial (RCT) aimed at promoting CRC screening. Participants completed a baseline interview that assessed health literacy as measured by Rapid Estimate of Adult Literacy in Medicine-Revised, sociodemographic factors, and psychosocial variables (e.g., health beliefs) prior to randomization and receipt of an intervention. Thirty-six percent of the participants were found to be at risk for low health literacy. Sociodemographic and psychosocial variables were assessed as predictors of being at risk for low health literacy using logistic regression. In the final model, predictors were male gender, being from a racial/ethnic minority group, being unable to work, having higher social influence scores, and having higher religious belief scores. These findings suggest several patient characteristics that may be associated with low health literacy, and highlight the importance of supporting all patients through simplified and clear communications and information to improve understanding of CRC screening information.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shannon M. Christy
- Division of Population Science, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute, Tampa, Florida, USA
- Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida, USA
- Department of Psychology, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
| | - Clement K. Gwede
- Division of Population Science, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute, Tampa, Florida, USA
- Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida, USA
| | - Steven K. Sutton
- Division of Population Science, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute, Tampa, Florida, USA
- Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida, USA
| | - Enmanuel Chavarria
- University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, School of Public Health, Department of Health Promotion and Behavioral Sciences, Brownsville, Texas, USA
| | - Stacy N. Davis
- Health Education and Behavioral Science, Rutgers School of Public Health, Piscataway, New Jersey, USA
| | - Rania Abdulla
- Division of Population Science, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute, Tampa, Florida, USA
| | - Chitra Ravindra
- Florida Department of Health Pinellas County, St. Petersburg, Florida, USA
| | - Ida Schultz
- Premier Community HealthCare Group, Inc., Dade City, Florida, USA
| | - Richard Roetzheim
- Division of Population Science, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute, Tampa, Florida, USA
- Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida, USA
| | - Cathy D. Meade
- Division of Population Science, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute, Tampa, Florida, USA
- Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida, USA
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Using WeChat official accounts to improve malaria health literacy among Chinese expatriates in Niger: an intervention study. Malar J 2016; 15:567. [PMID: 27881122 PMCID: PMC5121985 DOI: 10.1186/s12936-016-1621-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2016] [Accepted: 11/17/2016] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Malaria is the main health risk for Chinese expatriates working in Niger. Health education is a recommended intervention for prevention of malaria among non-immune travellers and expatriate workers. It is urgent to develop an effective and feasible way for these populations to obtain information about the prevention and treatment of malaria. METHODS An individually randomized, unblinded, controlled trial was used to evaluate the effectiveness of using WeChat official accounts for health education to improve malaria health literacy among Chinese expatriates in Niger. A total 1441 participants completed a baseline malaria health literacy questionnaire and were randomly assigned to an intervention or comparison group in a ratio of 1:1. From July to October 2014, 50 malaria prevention and treatment messages were sent to the intervention group; 50 health news messages were concurrently sent to the control group. Both groups completed the malaria health literacy questionnaire again 4 months after the start of the education intervention. A questionnaire addressing satisfaction with the health education programme was completed by the intervention group. Malaria morbidity data for 2013 and 2014 were also collected. RESULTS At baseline, participant health literacy rates were 58.29, 62, 54, and 34% for skills, knowledge, practice, and attitude, respectively. After the intervention, rates for all four aspects of malaria literacy were above 70%. There was greater change in knowledge, attitude, practice, skills, and overall health literacy among the intervention group compared with the controls, with a statistically significant difference (p < 0.01). This was especially true for acquisition of malaria-related knowledge, practice and attitude; comprehensive intervention practices; and, correct use of rapid diagnostic tests (p < 0.001). The reported malaria morbidity during the study period decreased from 23.72 to 15.40%. Participants reported high levels of satisfaction with the WeChat health education programme with over 80% stating that they would continue to follow the programme. CONCLUSIONS The present health education intervention, via a WeChat official account, for the prevention and treatment of malaria among non-immune travellers and expatriate workers proved to be an effective, sustainable, feasible, and well accepted strategy for improving malaria health literacy among Chinese expatriates in Niger.
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