The Medical Library Association guide to health literacy

Nearly a quarter of the U.S. population struggles with low literacy--and low health literacy. The inability to read, understand, and effectively utilize health information is linked to higher levels of chronic disease, more frequent emergency room visits, and early mortality. The cost and quality of care implications are enormous, and health literacy is a hot topic for policy makers and researchers--and for libraries struggling to respond to patrons' unmet health information needs.

• List of Figures, Tables, and Appendices p. ix
• Preface p. xi
• Part I Health Literacy: Understanding the Issues
• Chapter 1 Introduction to Health Literacy p. 3 Lynda M. Baker and Marge Kars and Feleta L. Wilson
• Chapter 2 Review of the Literature p. 9 Nancy Schaefer
• Definitions of Health Literacy p. 9
• Components of Health Literacy p. 11
• Special Health Literacy p. 12
• Characteristics Correlating to Low Health Literacy p. 13
• Reasons for Concern p. 14
• Consequences of Low Health Literacy p. 19
• Proposed Solutions p. 20
• References p. 28
• Chapter 3 Social Practices in Talk as Components of Health Literacy p. 55 Charlene Pope
• Introduction p. 55
• The Expanding Definition p. 56
• Theories of Language and Their Contribution to Health Literacy p. 58
• Social Practice in the New Forms of Health Literacy p. 59
• Social Biases and Their Role in Social Practice and Health Literacy p. 60
• Bridges to a More Multidimensional Health Literacy Solution p. 61
• Solutions p. 63
• References p. 64
• Part II Health Literacy Issues in Special Populations: The Influence of Culture, Ethnicity, Special Needs, and Age on Health
• Chapter 4 Cultural Competence and Health Literacy p. 73 Misa Mi
• Introduction p. 73
• Culture and Health p. 74
• Cultural Competence for Healthcare Providers p. 75
• Barriers to Cultural Competence p. 76
• Models for Cultural Competence p. 77
• Cultural Competence for Librarians p. 78
• Cultural Competence Training p. 80
• Importance of Culture in Understanding Health Literacy p. 80
• Promoting Health Literacy p. 81
• Challenges and Opportunities for Improving Health Literacy p. 83
• Summary p. 86
• References p. 86
• Chapter 5 Impact of Patient Low Literacy on the Individual and Family p. 93 Feleta L. Wilson
• The Impact of Low Literacy on the Patient p. 94
• Individuals with Low Literacy Skills: Who Are They? p. 95
• Family Health Literacy p. 96
• Health Disparities Associated with Low Literacy Patients p. 98
• Partnerships Between Nurses and Librarians p. 99
• References p. 100
• Chapter 6 The Association Between Literacy and Health: Providing Health Information to Adults with Low Literacy p. 103 Heather J. Martin and C. Nadine Wathen
• Introduction p. 103
• What Is Health Literacy and Why Is It Important? p. 105
• Low Literacy and Poor Health p. 106
• Methods of Delivering Health Information to Individuals with Low Literacy p. 108
• A Role for Librarians p. 110
• Conclusion p. 112
• References p. 113
• Chapter 7 Health Literacy for People with Disabilities p. 117 Shelley Hourston
• Importance of Health Literacy Skills for People with Disabilities p. 117
• Major Issues Affecting Health Literacy Skills for People with Disabilities p. 121
• Reflections from Consumers p. 123
• The Role of Librarians in Health Literacy for People with Disabilities p. 132
• Direction for the Future p. 136
• References p. 136
• Chapter 8 Health Literacy and America's Senior Citizens p. 139 Marcy Brown
• Review of Existing Research p. 140
• A New Model of Health Literacy p. 143
• Health Literacy Interventions Outside the Library p. 145
• Librarians and Health Literacy Interventions p. 148
• Learning Strategies for Older Adults p. 153
• Future Directions for Libraries and Librarians p. 156
• References p. 158
• Chapter 9 A New Digital Divide: Teens and Internet Literacy p. 161 Ellen Freda and Jonathan Hayes Goff and Andrea L. Kenyon
• Introduction p. 161
• Background p. 161
• Summer Teen Editor Program Goals p. 163
• Program Methods p. 163
• Program Materials and Expenses p. 164
• Overview of Program Sessions p. 164
• Summary of Program Findings p. 166
• What Worked p. 168
• What Did Not Work p. 169
• Lessons Learned p. 171
• Our Cautionary Tale: A New "Digital Divide" p. 171
• Conclusion p. 172
• References p. 174
• Part III Health Literacy Issues in Public and Hospital Libraries: Providing Programs and Services to Help Consumers Understand Their Healthcare
• Chapter 10 The Health Reference Interview: Getting to the Heart of the Question While Assessing Your Customer's Literacy Skills p. 181 Karyn Prechtel
• The Health Reference Interview p. 183
• Be Aware of the Person Asking the Question p. 184
• Get as Much Information as Possible p. 184
• Ask If They Have a Deadline p. 185
• Is the Question Still Not Clear? p. 185
• Follow-up p. 187
• What Not to Do p. 188
• What You Should Do p. 190
• Reference Interview and Literacy Levels p. 190
• Challenges of Telephone and E-mail Queries p. 191
• Conclusion p. 195
• References p. 195
• Chapter 11 Public Libraries and Health Literacy p. 197 Barbara Bibel
• Community Assessment p. 198
• Collection Development p. 199
• Training p. 200
• Collaboration and Partnership p. 201
• Outreach p. 202
• Conclusion p. 204
• References p. 204
• Chapter 12 Health Literacy in Canada: Highlighting Library Initiatives p. 209 Susan Murray
• Canadian Library Scene p. 211
• British Columbia p. 211
• Nova Scotia p. 212
• Ontario p. 213
• Quebec p. 214
• Conclusion p. 215
• References p. 215
• Chapter 13 Consumer Health Services in Hospitals: The Front Line for Health Literacy p. 217 Julie Esparza
• Consumer Health Services in Hospital Libraries Survey (CHSHL) p. 218
• Internal Partnerships p. 218
• Availability of Collection p. 221
• Packets of Information p. 225
• Outreach Services p. 231
• Partnerships and Services p. 235
• Conclusion p. 238
• References p. 238
• Chapter 14 Health Literacy in Action-The Bronson Experience p. 243 Marge Kars
• Literature Review p. 243
• The Bronson Initiatives p. 245
• Other Bronson Health Literacy Initiatives p. 247
• The Health Sciences Library Initiative p. 248
• The Nursing Initiative p. 249
• Lessons Learned p. 250
• References p. 250
• Part IV The Future: Ways to Initiate and Become Involved with Health Literacy Programs
• Chapter 15 Intervention Programs for Health Literacy p. 259 Cleo Pappas
• What Is an Intervention? p. 259
• Poor Health Literacy p. 260
• Do Reading Levels Correspond to Consumer Needs? p. 261
• Consequences of Poor Health Literacy p. 262
• The Role of JCAHO p. 262
• Institutional Review Boards (IRBs) and Informed Consent p. 263
• Role of Librarians p. 266
• Role of Pharmacists p. 268
• Readability p. 269
• Conclusion p. 271
• References p. 271
• Chapter 16 Forming and Funding Collaborations to Address Health Literacy p. 281 Kristine Alpi and Dina Sherman
• Identifying Existing Health Literacy Collaborations p. 282
• Local Example: New York Health Literacy Collaborations p. 286
• Identifying Funding for Collaborative Efforts p. 291
• Working Successfully with Funding Agencies p. 293
• Sustaining Collaborations in Health Literacy p. 294
• Conclusion p. 294
• References p. 294
• About the Editors and Contributors p. 299
• Index p. 305