Saturday, 7 April 2012
But wait...another opportunity
Happy easter to all. As an add-on to my last post, I am also working on three health literacy projects this year (gestational diabetes, skin infections and gout). We are interviewing patients, whanau, health practitioners and managers at this point, with a view to developing professional development (for the health sector) and resources (for the public/patients) which could help improve health literacy (e.g. by improving the interactions between health professionals and patients and building knowledge and skills within families/communities). The more I read and view, the more potential I see for web 2.0 to be a way of creating online learning communities (maybe by tapping into existing online health communities) to help people manage their own health, prepare for health interactions and make informed choices.
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I think you overlook it is often not lack of literacy or information that affects people's management of their health conditions but lack of choice. If you are from a low socio-economic community that relies on the public health sector usually you have no choice but to accept the only care you are offered even when it is substandard.
ReplyDeleteThere are indeed many reasons that health management is poor. Health literacy, including the unreasonable demands of the health system, is one reason - and the one I am able to work with at present. We work with many isolated and poor communities so I understand that literacy is not the sole answer.
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