What is health literacy?
Individual health literacy is how well someone can:
- find or access health information or health services
- understand information about health and how health services work
- work out which information and services are relevant for their own situation
- make the best health decisions for themselves and do what they need to do to improve or maintain their health.
The health literacy environment is how well the health service and its staff:
- communicate with consumers
- organise their services so they are easy to navigate
- integrate care across services.
The Health Literacy helps us to:
- Follow directions, understand and act on health information such as procedures and medication instructions
- Navigate the healthcare system including locating services and providers and coordinating multiple services
- Communicate and share information about our health with healthcare providers
- Fill out complex health forms and give informed consent
- Ask questions and make health decisions
- Manage long term health conditions
- Recognise when to seek care
- Understand public health messages
- Take preventive health measures such as immunisation, cancer screening and keeping up a healthy lifestyle
- Advocate for improved health conditions and care for ourselves, families and our community
- Find and identify health information that is accurate and reliable
Health literacy is needed for even the simplest health tasks.
Can you think of the knowledge and skills that are required just to take one medication safely?
Let’s take an example journey through our health system. What health literacy barriers are there along the way?
What influences health literacy?
Health literacy is influenced by
The health literacy environment
Current health status and health experience
Age
Education
Culture
Language
Social networks
Socio-economic factors
Health literacy is also determined by personal skills and the context in which those skills are applied. A person may have a high level of health literacy in one situation, and a low level in another. Health literacy can be considered a state, not a trait; our health literacy can be affected day to day by stress or feeling unwell.
While anyone can have a low level of health literacy, certain groups are more likely to have low health literacy, including:
- Older people
- Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander populations
- People from Culturally and Linguistically
- Diverse backgrounds
- People of low socio-economic status
- People who completed lower levels of schooling and education.
Where can I find more information?
2018 National Health Literacy Survey
This survey provides insight into how Australians feel they score in the nine domains of the Health Literacy Questionnaire. The results show where we can most improve health services, and which populations have the lowest health literacy. It highlights that health literacy is an important equity issue, with the most disadvantaged faring the worst.
NSW Health Literacy Framework
This framework released by the Clinical Excellence Commission in 2019 features four priorities for action by health organisations. These aim for system level change in the way we deliver health care, to improve safety and quality.
These are:
- Patients, families and carers are active partners in their health care
- Staff communicate with patients, families and carers in ways they understand
- Health facilities and centres are easy to access and navigate
- Our health systems are built to be sustainable and reliable for every patient, every time
It includes recommendations for health leaders and health staff to implement to improve health literacy. Look closely and you’ll see examples of the Northern NSW Health Literacy Project leading the way!
Sydney Health Literacy Lab and Health Literacy Hub
The Health Literacy Hub hosts resources about health literacy and a community of practice for health professionals.
Visit the Hub here: https://healthliteracyhub.org.au/
The Health Literacy Lab is a health literacy research group based at the University of Sydney, who develop and test interventions and solutions to improve health literacy.
Visit the Lab and see current research here: https://sydneyhealthliteracylab.org.au/
Tasmanian health literacy website
Developed by the Tasmanian Department of Health, this website includes detailed information about health literacy, resources and tools and examples of Tasmanian health literacy initiatives.
Canberra health literacy website
A website developed by the Health Care Consumers’ Assocation about health literacy. It is “a central point for health literacy information, training and resources for the ACT.”
Consumer Enablement Guide
Health Literacy is featured as one of the 11 ways to support consumer enablement in the Agency for Clinical Innovation’s Consumer Enablement Guide.
The site also features some great resources and tools to help you support people to better manage their own health.
References
- A. Aaby, K. Friis, B. Christensen, G. Rowlands and H. T. Maindal, “Health literacy is associated with health behaviour and self-reported health: A large population-based study in individuals with cardiovascular disease,” European journal of preventive cardiology, vol. 24, no. 17, pp. 1880-1888, 2017.
- Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care, “National statement on health literacy: taking action to improve safety and quality,” 2014.
- Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care, Tip Sheet 8: Health Literacy and the NSQHS Standards, 2014.
- Australian Institute of Health and Welfare;, “Health Literacy,” 2022. Visit aihw.gov.au . (Accessed 2022)
- X. Chen, J. L. Hay, E. A. Waters, M. T. Kiviniemi, C. Biddle, E. Schofield, Y. Li, K. Kaphingst and H. Orom, “Health Literacy and Use and Trust in Health Information, Journal of Health Communication,” Journal of Health Communication, vol. 23, no. 8, pp. 724-734, 2018.
- Clinical Excellence Commission, “SAER Data – System Factors in Clinical Incidents,” NSW Government, 2021. Visit cec.health.nsw.gov.au (Accessed 2022).
- S. Hill, “Report of the Victorian 2014 Consultation on Health Literacy,” Centre for Health Communication and Participation, La Trobe University, Melbourne, 2014.
- U. W. Jayasinghe, M. F. Harris, S. M. Parker, J. Litt, M. van Driel, D. Mazza, C. Del Mar, J. Lloyd, J. Smith, N. Zwar, R. Taylor and P. E. i. P. (. P. Group, “The impact of health literacy and life style risk factors on health-related quality of life of Australian patients,” Health and Quality of Life Outcomes, vol. 14, no. 68, 2016.
- C. Stormacq, J. Wosinski, E. Boillat and S. Van den Broucke, “Effects of health literacy interventions on health-related outcomes in socioeconomically disadvantaged adults living in the community: a systematic review,” JBI Evidence Synthesis, vol. 18, no. 7, pp. 1389-1469, 2020.
- U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration, “Health Literacy,” 2007. Visit hrsa.gov (Accessed 2016).
- B. B. Visscher, B. Steunenberg, M. Heijmans, J. M. Hofstede, W. Deville, I. van der Heide and J. Rademakers, “Evidence on the effectiveness of health literacy interventions in the EU: a systematic review,” BMC Public Health, vol. 18, 2018.
Northern NSW Health Literacy Project acknowledges the traditional custodians of the lands across our region and pays respect to the Elders past, present and emerging. We recognise these lands were never ceded and acknowledge the continuation of culture and connection to land, sky and sea. We acknowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as Australia’s First Peoples and honour the rich diversity of the world’s oldest living cultures.