Health Care : Current Reviews

HEALTH LITERACY ASSESSMENT OF UAE COLLEGE STUDENTS: A SHORT TOOL FOR IMPROVING HEALTH PROMOTION

8^th World Congress on Healthcare & Medical Tourism

November 17-18, 2016 | Dubai UAE

Ludmilla F. Wikkeling Scott, Zainab Taha

Zayed University, UAE

Posters & Accepted Abstracts: Health Care: Current Reviews

Abstract:

Developed contries increasingly focus on health literacy (HL) as a preceptor for health promotions in light of the increasing burden of chronic diseases such as diabetes related cardiovascular disease and obesity. However, HL is not well-known in Arab countries where a steady rise in chronic disease prevalence has been observed in recent years. Rapid modernization, affluence and access to numerous foods with high fat contents and a more sedentary lifestyle contribute to the rise in chronic disease in even the youngest populations. The increasing rates of chronic disease, contribute to a major loss in productivity, lowering the pool of local human resources and driving up the cost of health care. HL can serve as a driving force for health promotion and behavior change since health risk behavior is often established at a young age. HL also serves as the bridge that connects policies on health and education. HL is context specific and is defined as the capacity to obtain, process and understand basic health information and services; make appropriate health care decisions, or act on health information; and the ability to access or navigate the health care system, which can be a challenge, particularly for diverse and vulnerable populations. HL must be considered in well-educated populationes, who still may find it challenging to process the overwhelming amount of health-related information available to date. The purpose of this presentation is to describe existing HL tools and present current research to adapt such tools for young populations in non-clinical settings.

Biography :

Email: Ludmilla.scott@zu.ac.ae