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8th European Public Health Conference: Parallel Sessions
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chronic disease. HL is a multidimensional concept covering
several functional, social and psychological dimensions. When
developing interventions to improve HL it is an important
question on which of these dimensions one should focus to
offer care that best fits the needs of individual patients. We
surveyed both the health literacy and self-management
capabilities of a representative sample of 1.826 patients with
chronic conditions or long term disabilities in the Netherlands.
The Health Literacy Questionnaire (HLQ) assessed 9 independent HL dimensions. Using cluster analysis we looked for
subgroups of patients across the 9 different HL profiles. Cluster
analysis produced a 7-cluster solution, identifying stable and
clinically meaningful subgroups of patients. In each subgroup
patients had at least some strengths but also reported
limitations on others HL dimensions. These pattern offering
concrete suggestions to tailor support to the needs of patients.
In addition, we found that patients in the 7 subgroups differed
significantly with respect to educational level, number and type
of chronic diseases, severity of disability, living situation and
the level of urbanity of their residence pointing to the
importance of taking context factors into account when
developing interventions to improve HL skills. For example,
people with chronic illnesswho were living alone require more
support with getting help from their social environment and
finding and understanding health information compared with
people we had a partner or children. While some subgroups
might have a similar total score, the actions for improving
their outcomes would differ.
Using health literacy profiles to tailor interventions to
the needs of chronic disease patients
Monique Heijmans
M Heijmans1, G Waverijn1, M Rijken1, R Osborne2, J Rademakers1
1
NIVEL – Netherlands Institute for Health Sciences Research, Utrecht, the
Netherlands
2
Deakin University, School of Health & Social Development, Melbourne,
Australia
Contact: [email protected]
Health literacy (HL) is an important prerequisite for successful
self-management and a determinant of health care use in