Health information channels and health literacy of Asian immigrant women in South Korea

Objectives: The purpose of this study is to identify the health information channels and the levels of health literacy among Asian immigrant women in South Korea. Methods: Data was collected using a standardized questionnaire from 754 immigrant women living in South Korea who come from China, Vietnam, the Philippines, and other Asian countries. Health literacy was assessed by REALM-R (Rapid Estimated of Adult Literacy in Medicine-Revised, Bass, et al., 2003), which was translated into Chinese, Vietnamese, English, and Cambodian. Descriptive statistics, t-test, ANOVA, and chi-square tests were used to analyze data by the STATA program. Results: Health information sources include public health centers/hospitals/multicultural family support centers (38.0%), families/friends (21.2%), and television (15.7%). Health information acquisition methods were group education (21.7%), the Internet (21.0%), and printed materials (17.7%). The average score of health literacy was 4.9 (SD=2.65) with a range of 0 to 8. 63.5 percent of the subjects were been identified as low literacy (less than score of 6). Immigrant women with a high score of health literacy were more likely to be Chinese (F=31.38, p<.001), reside in urban (F=3.15, p=.045), have had a longer time residing in South Korea (F=16.42, p<.001), have a high education level (F=4.05, p=.007), and have a high Korean language level (F=22.30, p<.001). There were significant differences among health information sources, health information acquisition methods, and health literacy. Conclusions: Immigrant women's health literacy, country of origin, time since immigration, education, and Korean language level should be reflected in developing health educational materials for them.