Abstract
Latinos remain the largest US population with limited health literacy (Andrulis D.P. & Brach, 2007). Concerned with how local media can meet the information needs of underserved audiences, we interviewed Latinas who were pregnant or mothers of young children living in a Spanish speaking community, and surveyed 33 local health professionals. Findings are that Latina women’s most common source of health information was family and friends. They said they tune to Spanish television and radio programs, but gave low grades to news media for health information. Medical professionals agreed that Latinas generally get their health information through friends and family, and rated the media poorly in terms of serving Latinas’ needs. Since the data indicate that the local news media are not serving Latinas’ health information needs as much as they could, we offer recommendations to potentially exploit new technological affordances and suggest expansion of conventional definitions of health literacy.
Highlights
Half of all American adults have difficulty understanding and acting upon health information (Institute of Medicine, 2012)
Many participants lacked health insurance and did not qualify for medical benefits due to their immigration status. This issue was raised by women in every group, and represents a significant step in the process of finding health information: Before they can begin to address their health issues, they must first find out where and how to get services
As a way of assessing the role of news media in serving the health information needs of Latinas who are pregnant or new mothers, this study explored the extent to which pregnant women or mothers of young children in a community near Washington D.C., and the medical practitioners serving this community, regard broadcast, cable, and print media as providing useful pre-natal and maternal health news
Summary
Half of all American adults have difficulty understanding and acting upon health information (Institute of Medicine, 2012). At greatest risk for serious health problems are those with lower socioeconomic status, little to no health literacy, and limited formal education They may face greater challenges in the form of anxieties that, by confirming negative stereotypes about their social group (“stereotype threat”), may detrimentally affect health and health-related behaviors (Aronson et al, 2013). This study probes the extent to which Spanish-speaking mothers of young children regard and use local news media as a source – or a potential source -- for basic pre-natal and maternal health information. Responses from these women are put in the context of responses from local health practitioners who serve Latinas. The goal was to see whether Latinas and medical practitioners responsible for serving them regard health information in the news media as valuable and useful
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