Health Literacy

Health literacy is the ability to understand and use information to make appropriate health decisions. The average adult reading level in the U.S. is 8 – 9^th grade, which means that many parents may have difficulty understanding crucial information related to their children’s health, such as patient/health education materials, discharge instructions, and pill bottle directions.

The health literacy resources below can help physicians improve communication with parents and children, so families can get the knowledge they need to manage conditions, take advantage of preventive services, and develop healthy habits.

Children’s literacy is also vital to lifelong wellness, so be sure to check out the health topic resources for Reading Readiness.

National Organizations

Free Online Course on Health Literacy from the U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services Health Resources and Services Administration. Unified Health Communication (UHC): Addressing Health Literacy, Cultural Competency, and Limited English Proficiency is free, on-line, go-at-your-own-pace training that has helped more than 4,000 health care professionals and students improve patient-provider communication.

Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion Health Communication  provides resources to help patients obtain, process and understand basic health information and services needed to make appropriate health decisions.

A PediaLink Health Literacy Course is one of the resources available from the The American Academy of Pediatrics Council on Community Pediatrics which works to improve the health of all children and families in their communities, reduce health disparities, and promote health equity as a basic right. 

Related Articles & Video

Video: Institute of Medicine Health Literacy - This video provides an overview of the findings from the 2003 Institute of Medicine (IOM) report on health literacy.

Video: American College of Physicians Foundation: Health Literacy -  Interviews with everyday Americans struggling to understand their medical paperwork.

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) Article: 'Literacy and Health Outcomes' - Research findings on two key questions: Are literacy skills related to health outcomes and disparities?  For individuals with low literacy skills, what are effective interventions related to health care?