DIGITALHEALTH LITERACY: A SNAPSHOT OF HIGHER EDUCATION STUDENTS IN NORTHERN PORTUGAL
1 Centre for Health Studies and Research of the University of Coimbra / Centre for Innovative Biomedicine and Biotechnology (CEISUC/CIBB), Coimbra (PORTUGAL)
2 ESS, Polytechnic of Porto; Centre for Health Studies and Research of the University of Coimbra / Centre for Innovative Biomedicine and Biotechnology (CEISUC/CIBB) (PORTUGAL)
3 ESS, Polytechnic of Viana; Centre for Health Studies and Research of the University of Coimbra (CEISUC) (PORTUGAL)
4 ESS, Polytechnic of Viana (PORTUGAL)
2 ESS, Polytechnic of Porto; Centre for Health Studies and Research of the University of Coimbra / Centre for Innovative Biomedicine and Biotechnology (CEISUC/CIBB) (PORTUGAL)
3 ESS, Polytechnic of Viana; Centre for Health Studies and Research of the University of Coimbra (CEISUC) (PORTUGAL)
4 ESS, Polytechnic of Viana (PORTUGAL)
About this paper:
Appears in: EDULEARN24 Proceedings
Publication year: 2024
Pages: 7789-7795
ISBN: 978-84-09-62938-1
ISSN: 2340-1117
doi: 10.21125/edulearn.2024.1826
Publication year: 2024
Pages: 7789-7795
ISBN: 978-84-09-62938-1
ISSN: 2340-1117
doi: 10.21125/edulearn.2024.1826
Conference name: 16th International Conference on Education and New Learning Technologies
Dates: 1-3 July, 2024
Location: Palma, Spain
Dates: 1-3 July, 2024
Location: Palma, Spain
Abstract:
Introduction:Health literacy can be defined as the ability to access, understand, evaluate, and apply health information to make informed decisions. In the context of higher education, where students are transitioning into adulthood and assuming greater responsibility for their health, understanding health literacy becomes crucial. The aim of this study was to assess health literacy levels in higher education students in northern Portugal.
Methods:
A quantitative, observational, and cross-sectional study was conducted using an online questionnaire available between December 2020 and April 2021, dissemination was conducted by the Portuguese Academic Health Literacy Network in 5 higher education institutions of the North of Portugal. The short version of European Health Literacy Survey (HLS-EU-PT16) was used, the questionnaire is divided into 3 domains healthcare, disease prevention, and health promotion. The literacy is classified into four levels: insufficient, problematic, sufficient, and excellent. In addition, data on gender, age, scientific area of the enrolled course was obtained. Chi-square goodness of fit tests were applied in order to assess if all the categories presented similar percentages.
Results:
A sample of 1,173 students were assessed, of those 892 (76%) were female, the mean age was 24.3 with a standard deviation of 8.4 years, 602 (51%), students were enrolled in health-related courses. About 42% corresponding to 495 of the students had a problematic or inadequate level of literacy (p value <0.001). Regarding the three domains (healthcare, disease prevention and health promotion) about 35%, 40% and 32% of the students, respectively, presented a problematic or inadequate level of literacy (p values <0.001).
Discussion:
The results for the global literacy levels showed that a high percentage of students have in the best case a problematic health literacy. The domain with the worst results was the disease prevention. However, all domains presented a percentage of insufficient or problematic literacy levels superior to 32%, which requires immediate attention. An adequate health literacy can impact on several aspects of higher education students, namely it can provide empowerment, enhance decision-making and academic success, and favor a healthy transition to adulthood. Therefore, health literacy programs focusing on higher education students should be considered.