October is Health Literacy Month

Posted by debbiemontenegro on October 30th, 2018

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This past month of October has been Health Literacy Month, but educating others and keeping up with new developments does not end in two days.

Health literacy refers to a person’s ability to get the health information and services that they need, and also how well they understand them in order to make better health decisions (MedlinePlus). At a base level this requires the ability to read, but also a complex set of skills combining the ability to:

• read and understand medical words;
• think critically;
• have the skill to navigate prescription information;
• understand health insurance policies;
• calculate premiums or deductibles, and much more.

An example of a health literacy skill is called “numeracy”. Numeracy refers to being able to work with and understand numbers; for example, calculating the correct dosage of liquid medication for a child.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention health literacy page, health literate organizations can help to remove barriers and improve health literacy by helping people to:

• Find
• Process
• Understand
• Decide on health information and services

For further definitions and resources on Health Literacy from NNLM, go to our Health Literacy page at https://nnlm.gov/initiatives/topics/health-literacy

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