UK Health Literacy Seminar:

Learning is Good for Your Health

Education Scotland was established on 1 July 2011 by the Scottish Government Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning as a new public body, charged with supporting quality and improvement in Scottish education and thereby securing the delivery of better learning experiences and outcomes for Scottish learners of all ages.

Think Literacies

Literacies

ReadingNumber

Skills

Writing

Speaking

Listening

Handling information

Solving problems

Expressing ideas & opinions

Adult Literacies in Scotland 2020 Vision

‘By 2020 Scotland's society and economy will be stronger because more of its adults are able to read, write and use numbers effectively in order to handle information, communicate with others, express ideas and opinions, make decisions and solve problems as family members, workers, citizens and lifelong learners.’

ALIS2020 Activity

Did you know that in Scotland…

more than 1 in 4 people of working age sometimes

face literacies challenges, even though they

generally cope with their daily lives?

Did you know that in Scotland…

1 in 28 people of working age face serious literacies

issues in their daily lives?

Literacies issues can have an impact on…

health and well-being employability and work family life financial capacity

Learning is Good for Your Health

Aim

The guide offers adult learning providers information on how to raise awareness and encourage literacies referrals from NHS sources.

Learning is Good for Your HealthObjectives

The guide will help learning providers to:

• Identify ways to engage with local NHS organisations based on the experience of others who have undertaken this work.

• Provide local NHS organisations with awareness raising information relevant to the health sector.

Learning is Good for Your Health

Outcomes

The information in the guide can support learning providers to develop awareness raising activities with the following outcomes:

• Health staff are aware of literacies issues and their impact on patients’ health and wellbeing.

• Health staff know how to broach the subject of literacies with patients and where to signpost.

Learning is Good for Your Health

1. Building relationships in the NHS 2. Using evidence for awareness raising

3. Other activities, resources and case studies

4. An ESOL literacies perspective

5. Specific Learning Difficulties and adult literacies

Learning is Good for Your HealthBuilding relationships in the NHS

•14 Area Health Boards

•Community Health Partnerships

•Aligning literacies work with health promotion andhealth improvement

•Health inequalities associated with literacies

•Impact of Literacies challenges and the patient journey

Learning is Good for Your HealthUsing evidence for awareness raising

National Evidence - SSAL (2009):

•26.7% may face occasional challenges and constrained opportunities

•3.6% face serious challenges in their literacies practices

•People who score lowest are considerably more likely to be 56-65

•There was evidence that people from the 15% most deprived areas

tend to have lower scores, and these results were statistically significant.

Learning is Good for Your HealthUsing evidence for awareness raising

International Evidence

The Scottish Government’s Health Literacy – A Scoping Study (2009) lists international evidence suggesting patients with low health literacy: • Are less able to self manage. • Have less knowledge about health- promoting behaviours. • Are less likely to be aware and make use of prevention facilities. • Are less likely to adhere to prescribed courses of treatment. • Have poorer health status and poorer self-reported health. • Have poorer health outcomes including knowledge, intermediate disease

markers, and measures of morbidity.

Other activities, resources and case studies

Learning is Good for Your Health

Case Studies:

•Volunteer Centre (Glasgow) MA has the confidence to do more

•Bridgeton Community Learning Campus, CountdownEast End, Glasgow: Learner A has been able to build confidence and apply for a college course

• BULB Literacy Partnership, Glasgow

Learning is Good for Your HealthAn ESOL literacies perspective

Highlights potential literacies issues for ESOL learners:

•Oral cultures•No reading and writing skills in language

one •Limited skills in language one•Unfamiliar with Romanic Scripts

Learning is Good for Your HealthSpecific Learning Difficulties (SpLDs)

and adult literacies

Highlights potential issues for learners with SpLDs:

• difficulties with short-term memory and working memory • organisational difficulties • orientation and coordination difficulties • environmental preferences • learning preferences • physical and mental health issues

Learning is Good for Your Health

Questions?