Public Health Global Conference

Health literacy is defined as a person’s capability to acquire and apply health information in order to improve or maintain health. Health literacy needs are marked by a high degree due to their significance in access, compliance with the instructions received from healthcare providers, and enhanced health. The above aspects of health literacy targeted by public health interventions entail a process or approach to presenting health information in an easily understandable manner, a process or approach of communicating health information to patients, and a process or approach of involving the population in making positive health decisions on their own.

People with good health literacy can easily find organizations and facilities for effective treatment of their diseases, understand all offered types of treatment, and better manage chronic diseases. For example, a person with high health literacy can read medication labels, understand a doctor’s instructions, and know when he or she needs further care. Such skills are often targeted by public health programs to be improved, especially in the context of the population with poor literacy, or with a language barrier, where the former is likely to result in poor health.

Health literacy also has an essential role in preventive health as this paper has shown. People having knowledge about the rationale of preventive measures like a balanced diet, moderate exercise, and periodic check-ups are most likely to adopt preventive measures. Accessing information through controlled language and visual displays, through community mobilization, to ensure a populace gets to make informed decisions is the goal of public health campaigns.

One way in which health literacy for those in decision-making roles can be promoted is through providers’ actions: adequate and culturally sensitive communication with patients. Employing teaching and communication, such as the “teach-back” approach, in which patients are asked to restate what the healthcare provider has said is an effective way to reduce the likelihood of misunderstandings and promote patient-expecting trust in interactions.

Increasing HL is an effective way to decrease health inequalities. Since public health makes sure that everyone has the necessary knowledge and skills to effectively manage his/her health then the overall health of individuals improves hence giving positive overall health.