the basics - World Health Communication Associates

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Use active voiceAvoid unnecessaryjargonInformation written using active voice is easier to understandand more likely to motivate the patient to action.Unnecessary jargon can be distracting to patients and oftenprovides little information. Medical terminology should be usedas infrequently as possible and, if used, should always be clearlydefined and explained to the patient.Studies have shown that the majority of patients prefer to have print materialsprovided in clear and concise formats like those described above. All print materialsshould be simplified regardless of literacy level of target group.Utilising visual aids. It is helpful to use visual aids in print material andduring clinical encounters to help patients remember and process health information.One study demonstrated that people who listened to medical instructionsaccompanied by a pictograph remembered 85% of what they heard in contrast to14% for patients who did not receive a visual aid (Houts et al. 2001). Visual materialsare useful to teach patients about health conditions that cannot be seen easily—for example, cholesterol in the blood vessels—and to demonstrate how to followsteps to complete a task. Visual materials should be tailored to reflect the culture, ageand background of the patient population and should be simple, recognisable andclear. Photographs and visual materials depicting how to correctly engage in healthactivities are useful methods of transferring health information to patients.4.1.2 Technology-based communication techniquesThe internet, mobile phones and other telecommunication advances allow forinstant local-global linkages and cost-effective information transfer and intelligencegathering. These technologies facilitate health literacy by providing people with achoice of information that can be accessed in their own time and allowing them toput their own information on the web. However, the current digital divide is moredramatic than any other inequity in health or income. Access to internet and mobilephone technologies reflects social and economic differences between and withincountries. High income countries—which have 16% of the global population and7% of the global burden of disease—have 94% of internet hosts. Low-incomecountries, with 84% of the population and 93% of the burden of disease, have only6% of internet hosts (Dzenowagis 2004).36SECTION 4: WHAT CAN WE DO TO STRENGTHEN HEALTH LITERACY?
InterventionsA wide variety of initiatives have tried to enhance access to technologies and addressthe digital divide. These initiatives include the introduction of low-cost hardware; thecreation of ‘staging posts’ where local intermediaries interpret information for others;language-specific mirror sites (where web pages are regularly translated into locallanguages); and training programmes for users. Such technologies not only addressinformation access issues for users but can be useful to institutions and governmentsas an interactive way of gathering feedback on the friendliness of services andinformation access.One widely-used type of technology-based communication technique istelephone-delivered interventions (TDIs), in which counselling and health remindersare delivered using the telephone or through text messaging. TDIs can vary by thetype of service provider and the extent to which the call is scripted. They may alsovary depending on characteristics and responses of the individual, and the extent towhich subsequent calls take into account information from other encounters with theindividual (IOM 2002).A systematic review of technology-based communication techniques showsthat such decision aids improve knowledge, reduce decisional conflict and stimulatepatients to be more active in decision-making without increasing anxiety (O’Connoret al. 1999).New communication technologies offer educational opportunities thathelp people to be more involved in their health decisions and treatment. Thesetechnologies include web-based learning, audio-visual aids (for example, videos,DVDs, spoken word), interactive games and ‘mobile health’ (m-health). Mobiledevices such as mobile telephones, as well as wireless and satellite communications,are giving remote communities an opportunity to be connected and have access toinformation. Two out of every three people on the planet now have access to mobile’phones. Sixty-four percent of all mobile ’phone users live in the developing world.By 2012, half of all residents in remote areas of the world will have mobile phones,compared with 305 million PCs or 11 million hospital beds. (Bloom & Woods 2010).The potential for m-health communications is enormous. M-health is a rapidlyevolving communication area and early results support its development as a mostpowerful interactive channel for health-related communications. Current usesfor m-health communication include citizen science (providing researchers withdata on risk promotion and behaviours), education and awareness, disease andSECTION 4: WHAT CAN WE DO TO STRENGTHEN HEALTH LITERACY? 37
Page 2 and 3: 2 FOREWORD
Page 6: SECTION 5: MESSAGES TO KEY STAKEHOL
Page 9 and 10: The guide has been developed throug
Page 11 and 12: WHO IS THIS GUIDE FOR?SUMMARYHealth
Page 13 and 14: Section 5: How can we advocate for
Page 15 and 16: systems and settings are ones which
Page 17 and 18: companies—which glamorise and pro
Page 19: Health literacy is best viewed as a
Page 22 and 23: 3. POOR HEALTH LITERACY IS ASSOCIAT
Page 24 and 25: Percent Alive50 60 70 80 90 100Adeq
Page 26 and 27: • Written communication regarding
Page 28 and 29: 3.2 MEASURING THE DEMAND AND COMPLE
Page 30 and 31: 3.3 SCORECARDSThe WHCA Action Guide
Page 32 and 33: 3.4 A PUBLIC HEALTH LITERACY KNOWLE
Page 34 and 35: Social CapitalLinks have also been
Page 36 and 37: They also have to move from communi
Page 40 and 41: epidemic outbreak tracking (providi
Page 42 and 43: may also include direct instruction
Page 46 and 47: For example, children and young peo
Page 48 and 49: Initiatives which have been shown t
Page 50 and 51: · understanding of bias and levels
Page 52 and 53: 4.4 HOME AND COMMUNITY SETTINGSPeop
Page 54 and 55: 4.5 WORKPLACE SETTINGSThe workplace
Page 56: 4.6 POLICY-MAKING ARENASPolicies at
Page 61 and 62: SECTION 6: BUILDING NATIONAL AND LO
Page 63 and 64: REFERENCESAllen CE. 2001. 2000 pres
Page 65 and 66: Figueroa ME, Kincaid DL, Rani M & L
Page 67 and 68: Kickbusch I & Maag D. 2008. Health
Page 69 and 70: Parker RM, Ratzan, SC & Lurie N. 20
Page 71: Sudore RL, Yaffe K, Satterfield S,
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the basics - World Health Communication Associates

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