Poor literacy ‘increases early death risk for elderly’
24 Mar,BBC
One in three adults aged over 65 in England have difficulty
understanding basic health-related information, suggests a study in the
BMJ.They are more than twice as likely to die within five years as
adults with no literacy problems, it was found.
The University College London study tested nearly 8,000 adults on
their understanding of aspirin instructions.
The Patients Association said patients should help draft information
leaflets so they are "relevant and clear".The researchers, from the
department of epidemiology and public health at University College
London, said that limited or low health literacy among older people has
implications for the design and delivery of health services for this
section of the population.Using a short test containing four questions,
based on instructions similar to those found on a packet of aspirin, the
researchers assessed the participants' ability to read and understand
the information.
They found that 67.5% had high health literacy (achieved the maximum
score), 20% were classed as medium (made one error) and 12.5% had low
health literacy (got two, one or no questions correct).In the study,
almost half of the adults aged over 80 could not correctly answer all
four questions, compared to one-quarter of the adults aged 60 or less.
The study followed the participants for an average of five years after
the test.During this time, 6.1% (321) died in the high health literacy
category, 9% (143) in the medium category and 16% (157) in the low
literacy category.
The researchers said that lower health literacy was linked to a
higher prevalence of depressive symptoms, physical limitations and
chronic diseases, such as heart disease, diabetes, stroke and asthma -
but higher health literacy scores were linked to stronger cognitive
abilities, including verbal fluency and working memory, they said.When
researchers adjusted for factors such as wealth, education, income,
ethnicity and basic health, the link between low health literacy and
mortality risk reduced, "but remained significant", the study
said.Katherine Murphy, chief executive of the Patients' Association said
it was worrying that so many people struggle to understand
health-related information.
"How are patients expected to make informed decisions if they do not
fully understand the information being given to them?"Patients must be
involved in the development of these information leaflets from the
outset to make sure they provide relevant and clear
information."Michelle Mitchell, director general of Age UK, said health
professionals have a responsibility to give patients information that
makes sense."That way, patients will be better empowered to manage their
own health conditions and make the positive lifestyle choices that lead
to better health and wellbeing."
|