SHM Converge Scientific Abstract ePoster Gallery-Tell Me What You Really Mean: Inpatient Health Literacy

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This cross-sectional study at UConn Health’s John Dempsey Hospital evaluated inpatient health literacy using the Rapid Estimate of Adult Literacy in Medicine-Short Form (REALM-SF) and a companion comprehension assessment. The project was carried out by 56 UConn Health Leaders, a pre-professional volunteer program, who screened 445 adult inpatients from September 2021 to October 2022. Of these, 368 patients completed both the reading and comprehension portions, and 344 also provided demographic and educational information.<br /><br />The study aimed to determine whether health literacy screening could identify patients at risk for difficulty understanding medical information and whether student volunteers could help report these findings to care teams. REALM-SF tested patients’ ability to read seven medical terms, while comprehension was measured by asking patients to define each word. Responses were compared with Oxford Dictionary definitions.<br /><br />Results showed that 15% of patients had below high school reading-level literacy and would likely benefit from simplified educational materials. However, only 6% of patients were able to correctly define all seven terms, revealing a major gap between reading ability and true comprehension. Notably, some patients with higher educational attainment still scored poorly on comprehension, showing that education level did not guarantee understanding. Minority patients were also represented among those with lower comprehension scores.<br /><br />The study concluded that while many hospitalized patients can read medical terms, far fewer truly understand them. This supports the need for communication strategies such as teach-back and frequent checking for questions. The project also demonstrated that student volunteers can successfully screen patients for health literacy and share the results with care teams, potentially improving transitional care and reducing readmission risk.

Asset Subtitle

Zoha Sarwat

Meta Tag

Author List Christopher L. Steele, Jason Carrese, Rose Karvandi, Zoha Sarwat

Category Research

Concept Medical Word Recognition

Concept Health Literacy

Concept Medical Terms

Concept Comprehension

Concept Transitional Care Planning

Distinguished Non-Finalist

Presenter Organization University of Connecticut School of Medicine

Presenting Author Zoha Sarwat

Track Translating Research into Practice

Keywords

health literacy

REALM-SF

inpatient screening

comprehension assessment

medical terminology

hospitalized patients

teach-back

student volunteers

patient education

UConn Health

Medical Word Recognition

Health Literacy

Medical Terms

Comprehension

Transitional Care Planning