Health literacy
Health literacy is about people having enough knowledge, understanding, skills and confidence to:
- use health information to be active participants in their care
- navigate health and social care systems
It is important to support people to improve their health literacy so they can take more control of their own health, and actively engage with health and social care professionals.
Having low health literacy interacts with having a limited English Proficiency (LEP), which refers to someone:
- whose primary language is not English, or
- who has difficulty communicating effectively in English
Having low health literacy and/or having LEP can significantly affect communication and, as a result.a person's ability to use the information as part of their decision making.
Improving the level of health literacy amongst communities can lead to changing behaviour around alcohol use, physical activity, and smoking.
The toolkit aims to measure individuals’ health literacy with the outcome focused on increasing scoring following an intervention.
Find out more from the Health Literacy Tool Shed
Download all aspects of health literacy scale (AAHLS) scoring guidance
Watch the Health Literacy Toolkit webinar for more information:
You can switch on subtitles once you have started to play the video. A menu will appear on the video screen.
Page last updated: 27 March 2024
