Quick Guide to Health Literacy

Table of Contents

About This
Guide

Fact Sheets

Strategies

Resources

Who is the Quick Guide for?

The Quick Guide to Health Literacy is for government employees, grantees and contractors, and community partners working in healthcare and public health fields.

It contains:

• A basic overview of key health literacy concepts

• Techniques for improving health literacy through communication, navigation, knowledge-building, and advocacy

• Examples of health literacy best practices

• Suggestions for addressing health literacy in your organization

These tools can be applied to healthcare delivery, policy, administration, communication, and education activities aimed at the public. They also can be incorporated into mission, planning, and evaluation at the organizational level.

If you are new to health literacy, the toolkit will give you the information you need to become an effective advocate for improved health literacy. If you are already familiar with the topic, you will find user-friendly, action-oriented materials that can be easily referenced, reproduced, and shared with colleagues.

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How to use the Quick Guide

The guide is designed to be a quick and easy reference, filled with facts, definitions, helpful tips, checklists, and resources you can use on the job. You can print out the materials and keep them at your desk, share them with colleagues, or bookmark this Web page on your computer.

The Quick Guide is divided into the following three sections:

1. The first section contains a series of fact sheets on health literacy, including a basic overview of key concepts and definitions and information on health literacy and health outcomes.

2. The second section contains practical strategies for improving health literacy. These include:

• Improve the usability of health information
• Improve the usability of health services
• Build knowledge to improve decisionmaking
• Advocate for health literacy in your organization
  

3. The final section contains a list of resources, including Web sites, research studies, and additional publications on health literacy.

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U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion