Abstract
The concept of health literacy, which is related to issues such as health behaviors, use of health services, satisfaction, has increased in national and international level in recent years. This concept refers to the individual's cognitive and social skills in health-related issues. The aim of this study is to determine the health literacy levels of individuals living in Ankara. The study was carried out with 387 volunteers. In the study, Adult Health Literacy Scale (AHLS), which consists of 23 questions developed by Sezer, was used. Mann Whitney U and Kruskal Wallis test were used to analyze the data. The average level of health literacy obtained in the study was formulated in accordance with the European Health Literacy Study and the level of international competence was determined. Accordingly, 50.1% (194) of the participants in the study were found to be inadequate, 42.1% (163) limited and 7.8% (30) sufficient health literacy. The level of perfect health literacy has not been found. In order to increase the level of health literacy, roadmaps developed jointly by policy makers and health professionals are needed. As the impact of culture on health literacy is known, developing local strategies is thought to be an effective way to increase the level of health literacy. It is important for healthcare professionals, public health professionals and health educators working in primary health care services to take roles in targeting the target population, developing strategy and communicating in the health literacy process.
Highlights
Healthcare services is an area where the decision-making role is undertaken by the physician owing to the information asymmetry in this field
Health literacy, which is key to the success of health promotion, public health and health education policies, improves access to health-related information, enhances the ability to understand and use such information, and empowers the individual to participate in the process
In order to increase the level of health literacy in the population with a community-based perspective, individuals, healthcare professionals and policy makers all need to fulfill their respective roles since an increased level of health literacy improves the communication between the individual and the healthcare staff, leading to improved health outcomes
Summary
Healthcare services is an area where the decision-making role is undertaken by the physician owing to the information asymmetry in this field. Health literacy, which is key to the success of health promotion, public health and health education policies, improves access to health-related information, enhances the ability to understand and use such information, and empowers the individual to participate in the process. According to the definition of the World Health Organization (WHO), health literacy represents ‘the cognitive and social skills which determine the ability of individuals to access, understand and use information in ways which promote and maintain good health’ [1]. The first level, i.e. functional health literacy, covers information on health risks and conventional health education outputs such as the skill to utilize the healthcare system. At the interactive health literacy level, the main focus is on developing personal skills in a supportive environment. The critical level includes supportive social and policy actions together with outputs related to cognitive development
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