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SAPC Hot Topic: the importance of ‘health literacy’ in primary care

For communication between doctors and patients to be effective, doctors need to share health information with patients in a clear and manageable way. This information can include the nature of a diagnosis, the risks and benefits of different treatments, how to take medications in a safe and effective way and actions those patients can take to improve their own health. Patients also need to know how to access, understand and make use of health services in ways that can promote and maintain good health. The ability to access, understand and use health information, including being able to navigate health services, has been termed ‘health literacy’ (Institute of Medicine, 2004). It is recognised as an important determinant of health. People can be well educated and even very literate but still have low health literacy; however, it is more prevalent in people with low basic skills. Recent surveys in the United Kingdom show that the percentage of adults below the literacy level expected of an 11 year old is 16% in England (Department for Education and Skills UK, 2003) and 25% in Wales (Williams and Kinnaird, 2004).