Posted: September 2nd, 2022

Nurse’s Role in Improving the Health Literacy of patients

Nurse’s Role in Improving the Health Literacy of patients
Health literacy is defined as the degree and the ability of a patient to obtain, understand, process communicate, and utilize health information in arriving at informed healthcare decisions. According to US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), an individual is said to have proficient health literacy skills if they understand basic healthcare concepts including, illnesses, the functioning of the body, treatment and care regimes, among others. Studies also show that patients with lower health literacy have poorer health outcomes and have higher medical costs.
Unfortunately, health literacy among Americans is still relatively low. According to the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Prevention, only a mere 12% of Americans possess competent health literacy skills. A recent study by Carolyn Dickens, a nurse practitioner at the University of Illinois Chicago established that nurses often overestimate their patient’s health literacy levels. Also, a bigger percentage of Americans with lower health literacy levels are those in rural areas, those with low income, the racial minorities, and older adults who did not get a basic education. This shows that there is a huge demand for health literacy in certain patient groups.
Nurses play a central role in ensuring that their patients understand various healthcare issues and concerns, especially those that have an immediate impact on their health and general well-being. Nurses are in constant and direct contact with patients and are therefore the best in promoting health literacy in patients. They should aim to ensure that their patients are well informed both in terms of preventive measures, such as knowing the importance of maintaining a healthy diet, benefits of exercising, impacts of smoking, and treatment-oriented measures such as observing medication guidelines.
Nurses can improve the health literacy of their patients in many ways. One is by creating a welcoming environment. By creating a trusting relationship, patients will feel free and open to talk about their health problems with the nurses and other health professionals. Nurses should also try to infiltrate into society by visiting community clinics and homes or by making printed information to reach out to patients and individuals in rural regions.
Nurses should embrace the need to use the simplest possible language when addressing and giving health care advice and instruction to patients. Patients are different and many of them do not understand even the simplest medical information. Another interesting approach is by encouraging a question and answer session during consultation. This way, patients will feel that their concerns are listened to and taken seriously. The nurse is also able to assess and establish their patients to establish the best way to educate them about their health.
Barton, Amy J., et al. “Health literacy: essential for a culture of health.” The Journal of Continuing Education in Nursing 49.2 (2018): 73-78.
Loan, Lori A., et al. “Call for action: nurses must play a critical role to enhance health literacy.” Nursing outlook 66.1 (2018): 97-100.
Macabasco-O’Connell, Aurelia, and Eileen K. Fry-Bowers. “Knowledge and perceptions of health literacy among nursing professionals.” Journal of Health Communication 16.sup3 (2011): 295-307.

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