Health literacy, numeracy, and interpretation of graphical breast cancer risk estimates

PATIENT EDUCATION AND COUNSELING

卷:83

Article

Brown, Sandra M.^2,3  Osann, Kathryn E.³  Bowen, Deborah J.⁴  Metcalfe, Kelly A.⁵  Burke, Harry B.⁶  Robson, Mark E.⁷  Friedman, Susan⁸  Weitzel, Jeffrey N.¹ 

[1] City Hope Natl Med Ctr, Dept Clin Canc Genet, Duarte, CA 91010 USA

[2] Saddleback Mem Med Ctr, Laguna Hills, CA 92653 USA

[3] Univ Calif Irvine, Irvine, CA USA

[4] Boston Univ, Boston, MA 02215 USA

[5] Univ Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 1A1, Canada

[6] George Washington Univ, Washington, DC 20052 USA

[7] Mem Sloan Kettering Canc Ctr, New York, NY 10065 USA

[8] FORCE, Tampa, FL 33647 USA

关键词: Health literacy;    Numeracy;    Graphicacy;    Breast cancer;    Risk communication;   

DOI  :  10.1016/j.pec.2010.04.027

来源: Elsevier

【 摘 要 】

Objective: Health literacy and numeracy are necessary to understand health information and to make informed medical decisions. This study explored the relationships among health literacy, numeracy, and ability to accurately interpret graphical representations of breast cancer risk. Methods: Participants (N = 120) were recruited from the Facing Our Risk of Cancer Empowered (FORCE) membership. Health literacy and numeracy were assessed. Participants interpreted graphs depicting breast cancer risk, made hypothetical treatment decisions, and rated preference of graphs. Results: Most participants were Caucasian (98%) and had completed at least one year of college (93%). Fifty-two percent had breast cancer, 86% had a family history of breast cancer, and 57% had a deleterious BRCA gene mutation. Mean health literacy score was 65/66; mean numeracy score was 4/6; and mean graphicacy score was 9/12. Education and numeracy were significantly associated with accurate graph interpretation (r = 0.42, p < 0.001 and r = 0.65, p < 0.001, respectively). However, after adjusting for numeracy in multivariate linear regression, education added little to the prediction of graphicacy (r(2) = 0.41 versus 0.42, respectively). Conclusion: In our highly health-literate population, numeracy was predictive of graphicacy. Practice implications: Effective risk communication strategies should consider the impact of numeracy on graphicacy and patient understanding. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

【 授权许可】

Free