Share accurate, accessible, and actionable information to guide health decisions.
With health literacy best practices in place, families and staff learn the skills and behaviors that support their health. Here is how you can support families and staff in making informed health decisions:
- Find trusted sources of information.
- Give easy access to health information.
- Make sure the content you share is easy to understand and act on.
- Help families and staff with challenges in navigating the health care system.
Skill Development
- Review How to Find Science-informed and Evidence-based Health Information to learn how to find and use up-to-date, trustworthy, and consistent health information.
- Listen to Health Online: Finding Information You Can Trust, beginning at minute 30:30, to find out how to help people from underrepresented populations have better access to find and use reliable health information on the internet.
Learning Activity
Online and digital health tools can increase access to information. However, that’s not so for people with low literacy levels. The same is true for those from under-resourced communities who don’t have access to the internet or know how to find reliable resources online. You can learn more about reliable online and digital resources with Health Online: Finding Information You Can Trust handouts:
- Handout 1 includes a list of reliable websites for health information and a checklist to assess websites you use or share.
- Handout 2 shares tips on searching for health information that is trustworthy.
In a staff meeting or professional development event, plan for how to use these two handouts in your program. Allow staff to practice using each handout. They can assess online content and lead the team in a discussion about what they learned.
As your program considers how to apply the learning from this activity, think about the unique obstacles faced by people from under-resourced communities when trying to find accurate health information from trusted sources.
Work with your program’s Health Services Advisory Committee or child care health consultant. This will help you learn about the perspective of families and professionals from the community. You can also explore strategies for sharing health information with staff and families that is easy to find, understand, and use.
Resources
For more information about evidence-based practices and interventions, join the Institute for Healthcare Advancement’s Health Literacy Discussion List.
Last Updated: March 4, 2024