Key result
Higher post-MI health literacy correlates with better adaptive coping strategies like planning.
Why the study?
Patients with myocardial infarction require adaptive coping skills and adequate health literacy to reduce morbidity, cost of care, and mortality, prompting an examination of how coping strategies and health literacy levels are associated among Jordanian patients.
Cross-Sectional (n=140)
Yes
Over 60% of Jordanian post-myocardial infarction patients have inadequate or problematic health literacy and rely primarily on emotion-focused coping, highlighting the need for routine health literacy screening and targeted patient education in cardiac rehabilitation.
Health literacy correlates with adaptive coping post-MI; hypothesis-generating for interventions, prospective studies needed before adoption.
Background: Patients with myocardial infarction require adaptive coping skills and adequate health literacy levels to improve their health and reduce morbidity, cost of care and mortality. Objectives: This study examined the association between commonly used coping strategies and health literacy levels among Jordanian patients with myocardial infarction. Method: A descriptive cross-sectional survey design was used. Systematic random sampling was used to recruit 140 patients with myocardial infarction from four hospitals in Jordan. Respondents completed two scales: the Arabic versions of the Brief COPE (AR-BC) and the 16 items European Health Literacy Survey Questionnaire (HLS-EU-Q16). The research process followed ethical principles and measures. Results: Respondents had low scores of engaging in coping activities. Emotion-focused coping and religious strategies were most used. Less than half (39.3%, n = 55) had adequate health literacy. The highest score was for the dimension Applying Information and the lowest was for Information Processing. Positive associations were found between health literacy levels and positive coping strategies (planning, acceptance, active coping, emotional support and positive reframing) and negative associations between negative coping strategies (venting) and health literacy levels. Conclusion: Patients with myocardial infarction had low health literacy and made more use of emotion-focused strategies rather than problem-focused coping strategies. Higher health literacy levels may be associated with the use of more adaptive coping strategies. Health literacy assessment and patients’ use of adaptive coping strategies should be fundamental to the nursing care of patients with myocardial infarction. Contribution: Jordanian patients post-myocardial infarction have limited health literacy and use mainly emotion-focused coping strategies. To promote patients’ adaptive, problem-focused coping, we recommend that health literacy training is included in nursing education curricula and HL screening is included in cardiac rehabilitation programmes.
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Alrababah et al. (2026) conducted a cross-sectional in Myocardial infarction (n=140). Health literacy level (HLS-EU-Q16) vs. Inadequate or problematic health literacy was evaluated on Association between health literacy levels and coping strategies (planning) (r = 0.314, p=<0.01). Health literacy was sufficient in 39.3% of post-MI patients and correlated positively with adaptive coping like planning (r=0.314, p<0.01) and negatively with venting (r=-0.169, p<0.05).
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