Health literacy is defined as "the ability to obtain, process, and understand basic health information." Current data indicates that more than a third of American adults - some 89 million people - lack sufficient health literacy to undertake and execute necessary medical treatments and preventive health care. Inadequate health literacy affects all segments of the population, but is more common in the elderly, the poor, and members of minority groups or people who did not speak English during childhood.
Some health system problems experienced by individuals with limited health literacy skills are reflected in the following statistics:
- 26 percent did not understand when their next appointment was scheduled
- 42 percent did not understand instructions to "take the medication on an empty stomach"
- 78 percent misinterpret warnings on prescription labels
While you cannot tell by looking, some of your patients may drop clues or "red flags" indicating they have limited health literacy. Examples include:
- frequently missed appointments
- noncompliance with medication regimens
- lack of follow-through with laboratory, imaging, or referrals to consultants
Patients may also say things like "I forgot my glasses, "I'll read this when I get home," or "Can you read it to me?" Low health literacy has been linked to poor medical treatment outcomes such as higher rates of hospitalization and less frequent use of preventive services. Both of these outcomes can be linked to higher health care costs.
The primary responsibility for improving health literacy lies with the health care professionals. In a future issue of Risk E-Notes, CAP's Risk Management & Patient Safety team will address strategies to enhance your patient's health literacy by implementing patient-friendly systems including medication reviews, appointment scheduling, and written materials.
Authored by
Paula Paulson
Senior Risk Management & Patient Safety Specialist
If you have questions about this article, please contact us. This information should not be considered legal advice applicable to a specific situation. Legal guidance for individual matters should be obtained from a retained attorney.