Greg Smith Executive Director Florida Literacy Coalition, Inc. Florida s Adult and Family Literacy Resource Center smithg@floridaliteracy.org 407-246-7110 www.floridaliteracy.org Definition: The degree to which individuals have the capacity to obtain, process, and understand basic health information and services needed to make appropriate health decisions. Literacy Health Literacy Below basic 14% 14% Basic 29% 22% Intermediate 44% 53% Proficient 13% 12% 1
Forty nine percent of adults who did not complete high school have below basic health literacy. Adults 65 and older have lower health literacy than younger age groups. Hispanic adults have lower health literacy than people in any other ethnic/racial group, with 41% having below basic health literacy. 1. Are more likely to have a chronic disease 2. Less likely to get the health care they need 3. Have an average of three times as many prescriptions filled as adults with higher literacy 4. Are twice as likely to be hospitalized as those with higher literacy 5. May have a lower life expectancy 2
Keep appointments To identify signs To understand insurance and consent forms Patient information and family history form Discharge instructions Understand health-related instructions Read maps and signs To take medication appropriately To stay healthy 3
Florida Health Literacy Initiative Recipient of the 2011 Award for Program Innovation and Collaboration United States Conference on Adult Literacy 4
INSERT FLC VIDEO 4 year grant -$480,000 Forty-four grants of $5,000 4,260 students and families served in 27 programs. Average improvement in HL assessment scores: 31% Student Behavioral Changes: Shared information they learned with family & friends: 86% Applied for at least one type of medical insurance (Medicare, Medicaid, Florida KidCare, etc) 63% Began exercising regularly: 39% Changed their eating habits to be more healthful: 54% 5
Collier County Housing Authority Land, Inc. Common Unity DeSoto County Education Foundation East & West Area Adult Schools/Polk Education Foundation Echo El Sol - Jupiter's Neighborhood Resource Center First Baptist Church of DeLeon Springs Flagler County Schools Adult Ed Florida State College at Jacksonville GROWS Literacy Council, Inc. International Learning Center of Jacksonville International Rescue Committee Literacy Volunteers of Gadsden County, Inc. Marion County Literacy Council, Inc. Miami-Dade College - Hialeah Campus Sarasota YMCA S.B. Idea, Inc. World Relief Jacksonville Pediatric Care Institution All Faiths Food Bank American Diabetes Association American Lung Association America s Urgent Care Center for Drug Free Living Central Florida Sports & Physical Therapy Community AIDS Network East Lake Chiropractic Fisherman s Hospital Florida Blood Centers Florida Hospital Hardee County Health Department Mariner s Hospital Florida KidCare Highlands County Soil and Water Conservation District office. Hispanic Health Initiatives, Inc Manatee Technical Institute s nursing and dental departments Mariner s Hospital Fl State College Nursing Program Osceola County Extension Services Osceola County Fire and Rescue Pinellas Cooperative Extension Agency, Poison Control Center-Tampa South Florida Community College s nursing and dental departments University of Florida Vision is Priceless- Immokalee Fire Department 6
Clinic and hospital guided tours Presentations from WIC or Florida KidCarerepresentatives UF/IFAS County extension offices Poison control Police department Mental health counselor Well water testing Medical, nursing, dental schools Can YOU think any of any other organization who can help? 7
New Beginnings Family Literacy Program Flagler County Learning Gardens Obesity Prevention Classes -Making Nutritional Meals on a Budget Created Box Gardens Read Select Children's Books Created Healthy Eating Recipe Books Celebratory Meal! 8
Zumba Class CPR 9
Introduction to Health Careers Health Project -Health Benefits of Red Wine and Grapes, and Preventing High blood Pressure Student Led Healthy Cooking Demonstration Student Nurses Help Conduct Health Screenings 10
West Area Adult School Health Fair Workshops Hypertension Screening Ways to Lower Your Blood Pressure Ways CPR/First Aid Medications (OTC vs. Rx) Cancer Detection & Prevention Diabetes Health fair, block party, or community bazaar with community partners Publish Now We Know: All About our Health booklet. Partner with a children s hospital and the fire dept. to educate about car seats and fire safety Take a trip to the local vocational center to sign up for healthrelated career programs Partner with a local gym to offer free short-term memberships with scholarship potential Research health topics and present findings to fellow students Help organize and participate in a walk to raise funds for cancer research 11
Staying Healthy: Integrating Health Education into Your ESOL Instruction Establishing Partnerships with Literacy Advocates & Health Professionals Teaching Basic Skills in the Context of Health: The Big Picture Opening Minds to Health Literacy: A Community-Based Approach ESL Health Literacy: Prescription for Life Fun Ways to Improve Health Literacy Teaching Health Literacy and Basic Skills Foto-novelas: Adding Health Content to Adult Literacy Programs A Community Health Advocates Model to Improve Hispanic Health Literacy English for Health: Developing and Promoting Health Literacy Partnerships Promising Practices in Health Literacy Applying a Health Literacy Lens to Learning Materials Say What? Bridging Communication Gaps in the Public Health Sector 12
Advantage to having programs use common curriculum and core measures Challenge using curriculum with beginning level learners Programs can do amazing work with $5,000 The strongest programs engage community partners Flexibility is key Learn from your mistakes Project-based learning works better for some than others The structure and dynamics of adult ESOL and literacy classes often provide a good setting to address sensitive subject matter. Good teacher training and networking opportunities make a real difference Growth Areas to Explore 13
Health Literacy Class and Mock Clinic, Literacy Network, Madison www.litnetwork.org Let s Talk About the Flu, Wisconsin Literacy www.healthliteracywisconsin.org Florida Health Literacy Initiative www.floridaliteracy.org MedlinePlus www.medlineplus.gov Ask Me 3 www.npsf.org/askme3 Health & Literacy Special Collection healthliteracy.worlded.org Lessons for Living Well: Nutrition Education for Adult ESOL www.lessonsforlivingwell.org Health Literacy Missouri www.healthliteracymissouri.org 14