Health Literacy & School Health Services: A Unique Opportunity

An article in Supplementary Issue #1, 2016 of Journal of Health Communication on health literacy discusses the connection between health literacy and the use of health care services. Most studies on this connection have focused on health insurance and less on the other barriers to use of care services. Most studies in HL have also been focused on existing patients (i.e. those that are already "in the door" of the physician's office and whether they can follow medical advice. The article shifts our attention to the barriers for individuals to get "to the door". It discusses non-financial barriers such as lack of time, travel etc. The article prompts some thoughts about the unique opportunity to examine this "getting to the door" aspect of HL through the school setting. Most health education curricula include learning objectives related to know about and how to use local health services. Some studies ask about child/youth regular visits to their doctor as a behavioural output. Another dimension to this improved access discussion related to HL could include comparisons between schools that have clinics on the premises and those that do not. A variation of this could be whether students actually visit local clinics as part of their health education program. Parental involvement and education could also be added as a consideration or support for the classroom instruction about services. Studies could also look at the impact of instruction/support for instruction on the use of preventive care among young adults immediately after high school. As we develop a more specific and deeper understanding of how health education curricula and programs in schools can promote basic health literacy, we should consider how various supports to the classroom learning related to health care services use can be coordinated, studied and monitored. Read more>>
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