Health literacy among main caregivers of Children with Special Health Care Needs: a cross-sectional study.
Sara Raquel Kuntz, Katarinne Lima Moraes, Alessandra Vaccari and 3 others
PMID 41172390WHAT IT FOUND
Most caregivers of hospitalized children with special health needs reported limitations in managing their own health, finding good information, and feeling supported, while being able to engage with providers.
Schooling and income were linked with these health literacy levels.
Key findings
01Among 139 caregivers, health literacy showed limitations in actively managing health, social support, and finding good information, but potentialities in appraising information and engaging with providers.
02Caregivers' schooling and family income were linked with several health literacy scales, including feeling supported by providers, social support, appraising information, finding good information, and understanding information.
03Internet was the main health information source for 87% of caregivers, while 13.6% named health professionals.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
Read the rest of this summary
You get three full summaries a month, free, and we do not ask for a card. Search, the TL;DRs and your library stay unlimited either way.
What it does not show
The data came from one high-complexity pediatric hospital in Porto Alegre, so they may not represent caregivers in primary care, other Brazilian regions, or children with lower-complexity needs. The study was cross-sectional, so it measured health literacy once and cannot show whether literacy changed over time or caused better or worse care. It did not use qualitative methods to explore why caregivers had these health literacy patterns. Caregivers were selected from hospitalized children, so the findings may not apply to families whose children are not currently hospitalized.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read the internet-use association as proof that teaching caregivers to use the internet will improve care. The study measured health literacy once and did not test any intervention.