An Evaluation of the Health Literacy of Patients Visiting Family Medicine Clinics and The Related Factors

Abstract

Aim: This study aimed to determine the level of health literacy among individuals visiting the Family Medicine Clinic in Tepecik Hospital and to reveal the relationship between health literacy and independent variables. Methods: This study has a cross-sectional analytical design. A sample size of 141 was found to produce a two-sided 95% confidence interval and an estimated standard deviation of 6141 people who met the inclusion criteria participated in the study. The dependent variable in the study was the health literacy level determined by using the Turkish Health Literacy Scale. Student’s t-test, ANOVA, Pearson correlation analysis, and linear regression analysis were used to analyze the relationship between the dependent and independent variables. Results: The mean Turkish Health Literacy Scale score was 28.95±5.86; 60.28% of the participants had problematic-limited health literacy, while 20.57% had insufficient, 17.02% had sufficient, and 2.13% had excellent health literacy. The health literacy score of females was 3.204 points lower than that of males. For each unit increase in household disposable income, the Turkish Health Literacy Scale score increased by 0.001 points. The Turkish Health Literacy Scale score was 1.771 points higher for those who have not been hospitalized in the last ten years. The Turkish Health Literacy Scale score increased by 1.306 points for a percent increase in the frequency of obtaining health-related information from the Internet, while it increased by 1.686 points for a percent increase in the frequency of obtaining health-related information from brochures, posters, or books. Conclusion: This study demonstrated that health literacy was quite limited and insufficient among the participants. Determining the factors influencing health literacy, planning with these factors in mind, developing policies to improve health literacy, and increasing the health literacy of individuals and society may be critical for the improvement of public health. Keywords: health literacy, health care, information, primary health care