The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA

Abstract #67342

Lisa Bain, MA¹, Annie Steinberg, MD², Yuelin Li, PhD³, and Olivia Thetgyi¹. (1) Deafness Research, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, 3535 Market St., 9th floor, Philadelphia, PA 19104, 215-590-7440, lbain@mail.med.upenn.edu, (2) Psychiatry, Children's Hospital of Pennsylvania, The Deafness and Family Communication Center, 3535 Market St., 9th floor, Philadelphia, PA 19104, (3) The Center for Outcomes Research, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, 3535 Market St., 10th floor, Philadelphia, PA 19104

In order for health-related information on the Internet to promote informed decision making, that information must not only be accurate and comprehensive, but accessible and readable as well. Yet, while about half of adults living in the United States have low or very low reading skills, Internet content is generally written at a 10th grade reading level or higher. We created a website about childhood hearing loss using "plain language" in both English and Spanish. Content is written at an average 5th grade reading level, with the goal to present accurate and complex information without oversimplifying or "dumbing down" the information. With support from the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD), we targeted English and Spanish-speaking parents from inner cities and rural areas. Information in Spanish was modified to be culturally appropriate. Included on our website is a decision aid designed to help parents find the information most relevant to their needs. Results from user studies showed that parents found the website to be easy to read, credible, user friendly, and valuable. Results are compared among groups stratified by language, socio-economic level, and experience using computers and the Internet.

Learning Objectives:

At the conclusion of this session, participants will be able to: 1.Understand the barriers faced by individuals with low literacy when trying to access information on the Internet. 2.Understand how plain language can facilitate information transmission to individuals with limited literacy.
• Recognize the difficulties inherent in disseminating complex information to people with low literacy.

Keywords: Health Information, Health Literacy

Related Web page: www.raisingdeafkids.org

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.