Health literacy: New developments and research

A substantial body of literature in public health and medical journals indicates that illness and premature death may be the result of a mismatch between the demands of health information and care systems and the literacy skills of vulnerable population groups. This paper offers an overview of published research to highlight new developments in the field of health literacy — an area of inquiry focused on the links between health outcomes and literacy skills. This overview focuses on literacy-related issues in the clinical encounter. Of particular importance to the clinical encounter are three literacy skills not fully examined in earlier publications: speaking, listening and calculating. The discussion highlights new areas of study such as examinations of the oral exchange, numeracy challenges and the literacy environment of health settings that are garnering interest among researchers and practitioners. The review includes attention to lessons learned gleaned from a variety of studies, mostly focused on chronic disease management, which are yielding best practice guidelines.