Healthcare Literacy

Hello everyone!

This month, October, is health literacy month, "Finding the right words for a better health." This idea is to help promote understandable health information.

I am excited about this topic because this is one of the reasons I write my books!!

The healthcare literacy rate is about a 5th grade level. (Normal literacy, that is non health care related in somewhere in the middle school range)

I wanted to create books that help a child learn a healthcare topic in a fun, easy to read format.

Kids learn a lot of facts in school. Kids learn more in depth facts at an earlier age then every before.

But does learning have to be all facts. Can't kids learn a concept in an entertaining way? I say yes. And that is why I write my books in a conceptual, rhyming method.

Kids may not remember all the words in real life healthcare but hopefully they can remember a rhyming story about button people, balloons, octopuses, etc.

As far as health literacy month, Helen Osborne has been a huge proponent of this topic. This month's theme is "Be a health Literacy Hero".

Please visit

www.Healthliteracymonth.org

National Patient Safety Foundation

"Ask Me 3" is a program that also addresses patient safety.

The 3 questions to ask your health care provider are:

1 What is my main problem?

2. What do I need to do?

3. Why is it important for me to do this?

As always you can find additional information at the cdc (Center for Disease Control and Prevention)

http://www.cdc.gov/healthliteracy/