Dear William, 

I wanted to cheer when I read your e-mail. I really like the definition you say you'd use now for health literacy. After the NAAL results showed that only 12% of US adults are health literate enough to meet the definition for "proficient," a major shift to looking at systems instead of individuals is in order! 

Audrey Riffenburgh, M.A., President
Plain Language Works (formerly Riffenburgh & Associates)
Specialists in Health Literacy & Plain Language since 1994
Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA 
Phone: (505) 345-1107   E-mail: ar at plainlanguageworks.com

Founding Member, The Clear Language Group, www.clearlanguagegroup.com
Co-founder, Health Literacy Institute, www.healthliteracyinstitute.net
Ph.D. Student in Health Communication, Univ. of New Mexico


  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: William Smith 
  To: The Health and Literacy Discussion List 
  Sent: Monday, April 21, 2008 5:33 AM
  Subject: [HealthLiteracy 1927] Re: Terminology, Labelling and Naming


  Low health literacy carries a stigma only if you do not fully understand the IOM definition - which says" 

  "the degree to which individuals have the capacity to obtain, process, and understand basic health information and services needed to make appropriate health decisions."

  Patients are not the only individuals in the health system.  Physicians are individuals, as are nurses, pharmacists, hospital administrators and policy makers.  It is not just the patients who has to obtain, process, and understand.  That is precisely what's wrong with the present system.  The patient has to do it all.  

  I will admit that if I were writing the definition again I would add ..."the degree to which individuals, organizations and systems have the capacity to obtain, process, understand and communicate basic health information........  ."

  Health literacy is not the function of individual patients or citizens- but of the systems that serve all of us.  
  The simplest and perhaps most powerful question you can ask yourself is:  "Am I a member of a health literate organization."

  Wm. Smith
  Executive Vice President
  Academy for Educational Development
  1825 Connecticut Ave., NW
  Washington, D.C. 20009

  Organize policy until self-interest
  does what justice requires.
  Phone: 202-884-8750
  Fax: 202-884-8752
  e-mail: bsmith at aed.org

  >>> "Johnston-Lloyd, Linda (HRSA)" <LJohnston-Lloyd at hrsa.gov> 4/17/2008 3:24 PM >>>

  Nicola,
  I agree with you as I feel low literacy may denote a stigma to some
  people.

  In the HRSA Unified Health Communication course, we agreed to use
  "limited heath literacy" it may be limited by worry about your care or
  diagnosis or inability to understand the words or stress with a visit to
  the doctor where you have received bad news, etc. any number of reasons
  can affect one's literacy at a given time.
  http://www.hrsa.gov/healthliteracy/training.htm


  Linda Johnston Lloyd, HRSA Health Literacy Coordinator ~HRSA Center for
  Quality ~ Room 7-100 5600 Fishers Lane ~ Rockville, MD 20857
  p: 301-443-0831~ f: 301-443-9795 ljohnston-lloyd at hrsa.gov ~ www.hrsa.gov



  -----Original Message-----
  From: Davies, Nicola [mailto:NDavies at dthr.ab.ca] 
  Sent: Wednesday, April 16, 2008 1:19 PM
  To: The Health and Literacy Discussion List
  Subject: [HealthLiteracy 1920] Re: Terminology, Labelling and Naming

  I have a question for the list - just an informal survey.

  How do you feel about referring to the people we tailor materials for as
  "low literate" or "low health literate"? I have read lots of excellent
  opinion pieces on naming of people with tangible diseases; e.g., "people
  with diabetes" rather than "diabetics". However, using the phrase
  "people who have low literacy" or "People with low health literacy" just
  doesn't ring fair, simply because we have already established that
  literacy is not a personal issue, but rather a social one, and cannot be
  owned wholly by the individual we are referring to.
  So, how do you refer to the people we are ultimately working for?

  I am looking forward to seeing what you all think.

  Regards,
  Nicola

  Nicola Davies, BA
  Health Literacy Specialist
  Wellness Centre Coordinator
  Consumer Health Information Technician
  ndavies at dthr.ab.ca
  (403) 352-7643
  Red Deer Regional Hospital
          3942-50A Ave
          Red Deer, AB
          T4N 4E7

  -----Original Message-----
  From: healthliteracy-bounces at nifl.gov
  [mailto:healthliteracy-bounces at nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Champ-Blackwell,
  Siobhan
  Sent: Wednesday, April 16, 2008 9:42 AM
  To: The Health and Literacy Discussion List
  Subject: [HealthLiteracy 1918] FW: [caphis] Fw: [NPInfo] iPods for
  PatientEducation


  This email has gone through several listservs, i am just sending on the
  original. Pretty interesting use of ipods. I like that the video shows
  an older person using it.
  Siobhan



  ----- Forwarded Message ----
  From: "repyke at infionline.net" <repyke at infionline.net>
  To: Telehealth-L <TELEHEALTH at LISTSERV.ICORS.ORG>
  Cc: NP Info <npinfo at nurse.net>; EHEALTH <EHEALTH at LISTSERV.ICORS.ORG>;
  nrsing-l <nrsing-l at mailman.amia.org>; CONSUMER-HEALTH-INFORMATICS
  <CONSUMER-HEALTH-INFORMATICS at JISCMAIL.AC.UK>
  Sent: Thursday, April 10, 2008 5:58:29 PM
  Subject: [NPInfo] iPods for Patient Education

  Dear All,

  There is an interesting video clippng on how Grayson H. Wheatley III,
  M.D.,a cardiovascular surgeon at the Arizona Heart Institute, uses video
  iPods to educate his patients about diet, exercise, heart and surgical
  procedures.

  You can view the clip at

  http://www.nursezone.com/Nursing-News-Events/media-library.aspx

  Thank you very much.

  Regards
  Jai

  --
  A.U.Jai Ganesh,
  Project Coordinator,
  Telemedicine & eHealth,
  Prasanthi Nilayam.
  India.

  ----------------------------------------------------
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  Email delivered to ljohnston-lloyd at hrsa.gov
  ----------------------------------------------------
  National Institute for Literacy
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