Writing result-oriented ad copy is difficult, as it must appeal to, entice, and convince consumers to take action.
EdLogics and Global Action Platform recently hosted a conference focused on the economic benefits of improving health literacy in communities.
The event, held November 5 in Norfolk, Virginia, highlighted the specific needs and benefits to the Hampton Roads and Nashville areas.
EdLogics Founder and CEO Thomas M. Chamberlain, PharmD, opened the event by sharing the economic impact of low health literacy.
“Low health literacy is a multibillion-dollar problem,” he said. “Patients with low health literacy are more likely to visit an emergency room, less likely to follow a doctor’s instructions, and have higher mortality rates.”
Patients with low health literacy are more likely to visit an emergency room, less likely to follow a doctor’s instructions, and have higher mortality rates.
To address this crisis, Global Action Platform and EdLogics are creating Empower Community Health, an initiative utilizing technology to improve health literacy. This platform, through which communities can connect health and prosperity, will in turn create a competitive economic advantage for their regions in the ongoing competition for investments, talent and markets.
The EdLogics Platform will serve as the technological backbone of Empower Community Health. The Platform features:
“The Platform is proven, easy-to-use, and can be accessed on desktop and mobile devices, making it readily accessible to anyone with access to the internet,” added presenter James Spore, President and CEO of Reinvent Hampton Roads.
Through Empower Community Health, the EdLogics Platform will be available to the citizens of Hampton Roads and Nashville, including underserved populations, the public school system, and university students. EdLogics and Global Action Platform will work with schools, libraries, community health clinics, churches, YMCAs and other civic organizations to provide access.
The comprehensive community implementation has many innovative and important features, including:
At the community level, Global Action Platform will provide regional program managers to work with sponsors, community organizations, and other stakeholders to leverage local resources, networks, and existing programs to drive awareness. Local universities will serve as strategic outreach partners and provide academic research expertise.
A version of this article was originally published 11/29/2018.
Mr. Garcia is a 65-year-old man with prediabetes.
He’s just retired and moved to a new area. At his first visit with his new primary care doctor, a nurse asks if he can usually understand a doctor’s instructions.
“Absolutely,” he says. “I understand perfectly.”
But does he really?
Situations like this highlight the importance of measuring two kinds of health literacy — how much a patient thinks they know compared to how much they actually know. If doctors measure just one kind of health literacy, they may not realize how much a patient understands and how well they can follow basic health advice..
Better understanding might allow Mr. Garcia to act sooner. He might get treatment or make healthier choices — and avoid diabetes. Smart changes now could mean avoiding the pain and expense of a chronic health problem later.
That’s why, when possible, it’s best to measure both subjective and objective health literacy.
Subjective health literacy measures how health literate someone thinks they are.
You can gauge subjective health literacy with questions like:
“How confident are you in filling out medical forms by yourself?”
The nurse in the story above was measuring subjective health literacy, albeit informally. The questions don’t have objectively correct answers, which may feel less threatening to the patient. It doesn’t feel like a test you’d take in school.
But there are disadvantages too. People often overestimate their own ability. And they may tell you what they think you want to hear. In other words, they may report strong health literacy even if they rarely understand or act on what a doctor tells them.
A patient has to actually demonstrate factual knowledge to measure objective health literacy. One popular tool, The Newest Vital Sign, shows the patient a nutrition label and asks how many calories they’d get by eating multiple servings, as well as other basic questions.
With objective health literacy, you know patients aren’t overestimating their own ability, or telling you what they think you want to hear. But because there are right and wrong answers, some patients feel like they’re back in school, and the memories aren’t always pleasant.
EdLogics measures — and strives to cultivate — improvements in both kinds of health literacy.
We use only validated surveys. When we measure objective health literacy, we present questions a little differently, making them fun, adding graphics, and incorporating great design. It’s all gamified and has fun incentives to encourage continued engagement. You can even win cash drawings, where the more you play, the more likely you are to win.
Users do not feel like they’re back in school.
By measuring both types of health literacy, we put ourselves in the best position to understand how health literacy changes over time. This can help us further refine our suite of health literacy education games, and be even more effective in our mission to improve health literacy.
A version of this article was originally published 7/6/2017.
ospital emergency departments, as the name implies, are meant to be used for true emergencies.
Unfortunately many trips to the ER are not life-threatening. Many are, in fact, both unnecessary and avoidable.
A study published in 2013 found that:
Low health literacy leads many patients to the ER when they could have received care at a less expensive setting – like at their doctor’s office or at a walk-in clinic. It’s also known that patients with low health literacy are more likely to make return visits to ERs within two weeks.
Some barriers for patients with low literacy include:
More recent research, presented at the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine Annual Meeting in Orlando, explored how low health literacy was related to preventable ER visits. The study looked at over 1,200 participants and a total of 4,444 ER visits. Over 10% of the visits were found to have been preventable.
Of the preventable visits, over 60% led to hospital admission. The average cost of a hospital stay is estimated to be close to $10,000.
When researchers looked at the health literacy of the participants, those with lower health literacy were over twice as likely to have made a preventable ER visit. Having below an eighth-grade reading level was the definition used for low literacy.
The most common preventable conditions leading to ER visits included chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), urinary tract infections and long-term complications from diabetes.
While not surprising, the study illustrates that patients with low literacy are more likely to make preventable visits to ER and other emergency services. And increasing the literacy of patients can help dramatically decrease unnecessary healthcare costs.
A version of this article was originally publshed 10/09/2017.
n estimated 80% of large US employers offer wellness programs for their employees. In fact, wellness programs are often touted as key employee benefits.
But new research questions if wellness programs actually do reduce health care costs. Research published in the Journal of the American Medical Association was jointly conducted by Harvard and the University of Chicago.
The researchers randomly offered different wellness programs at various work sites and then tracked the results. Specifically, they offered new wellness programs at randomly selected locations of BJ’s Wholesale Clubs. Those results were compared to existing programs at other locations to identify any changes in individual behavior as well as any changes in the corporate culture.
The results showed some demonstrated behavior changes ... but little effect on other outcomes.
Behavior changes recorded at sites offering Wellness Programs:
Outcomes showing no significant impacts included:
Researchers noted that the field of studying wellness programs is still relatively new. Others have commented that 18 months might not be enough time to effectively measure the success/impact of wellness programs. Might it not take decades?
One of the coauthors of the study, Zirui Song, MD, PhD, assistant professor of health care policy and medicine at Harvard Medical School’s Blavatnik Institute, stated her summary.
As we grow to understand how best to encourage healthy behavior, it may be that workplace wellness programs will play an important role in improving health and lowering the cost of health care. ... For now, however, we should remain cautious about our expectations from such interventions. Rigorous research to measure the effects of such programs can help make sure we’re spending society’s health and wellness dollars in the most effective way.
One missing variable is the role that education plays. Would behavior change absent of an increase in health literacy even be sustainable? Conversely, if employees better understand their personal health — how to properly use an asthma inhaler, for example – would behavior change persist longer?
We’ll be fielding these questions to several health literacy experts so check back for their responses.
A version of this article was originally published 4/19/2019.
Health insurance plans can seem like they’re written in secret code.
Between trying to decipher mysterious acronyms — like HSAs, FSAs, and HDHPs — and remembering your portal password, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed.
"Many of the people we work with feel overwhelmed with the process of choosing the right health insurance plan options," says Scott Spann, a financial planner with Financial Finesse, a provider of workplace financial wellness benefits.. "The majority of Americans are anxious about rising premiums and choosing the right type of coverage." But digging into the details is well worth the effort, he adds.
As high deductible healthcare plans continue to grow in popularity, it’s important to at least take time to understand the basics. Failing to take the time to review your options can be a costly mistake.
Can’t find your decoder ring? This primer can help you get started. EdLogics members can find more in the Glossary of Terms on our Health Insurance learning page.
A version of this article was originally published 6/28/2017.
More and more people are talking about health literacy across the globe.
Experts in medicine, government and public policy are continuing to expand their understanding of the incredible opportunity that increasing health literacy can have in improving health and health outcomes.
Low health literacy means someone has trouble understanding basic healthcare facts, and it often leads to poor health outcomes. These challenges include:
At the recent Health Literacy Conference presented by Wisconsin Literacy in Madison, Wisconsin, luminaries and academics in the area of health literacy met to discuss how to better address the global challenges and costs associated with low health literacy.
In a panel led by the International Health Literacy Association (IHLA), the organization shared its goals and tactics for addressing this global issue.
The International Health Literacy Association (IHLA) is a member-based association for professional development within the health literacy field. IHLA serves a diverse range of stakeholders, medicals, public health professionals, educators, as well as many others engaged in health literacy, research, policy, education and practice.
While research is being conducted across the globe, there is currently little coordination of these efforts or even the sharing of critical data and findings. Not surprisingly, much of this research is carried out within very homogenous populations. This makes the global relevancy of any accumulated data a relatively complex topic.
The IHLA seeks to help in a number of ways:
The IHLA launched with meeting in North America, Asia and Europe. They are currently developing a schedule for upcoming meetings and initiatives.
They are also forming work groups and creating a more formal organizational structure. Visit the International Health Literacy Association for more informaton.
A version of this article was originally published 4/18/2017.
sing telemedicine, or telehealth — where you see a doctor online from your own home rather than in person — can save you time, money, and often a lot of hassles. Discover how telemedicine works, what health problems it's often used for, and how it can help you.
This is an example of the engaging healthcare infographics available to users of The EdLogics Platform, a gamified space that improves employee engagement and health literacy.
View, share, download, and print our huge collection of free infographics on a variety of topics, from preventing and managing common health problems to navigating the healthcare system.
Contact us to learn how to get access for your organization.
A version of this post was first published 6/7/2018.
Your everyday choices matter more than you might think. In fact, daily habits have a bigger impact on your health than your race, gender, environment, family history, income, or any other single factor. Learn how to swap bad habits for healthier ones — and reap the rewards.
This is an example of the engaging healthcare infographics available to users of The EdLogics Platform, a gamified space that improves employee engagement and health literacy.
View, share, download, and print our huge collection of free infographics on a variety of topics, from preventing and managing common health problems to navigating the healthcare system.
Contact us to learn how to get access for your organization.
A version of this post was first published 1/9/2018.
