Healthy
The Media is the Message
DOCTORS DIVERSIFY
“ by Wayne B. Tuckson, MD
People 2030” is an initiative from the federal Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion that first appeared in 1980. Now its fifth release divides health literacy into two components, personal and organizational. Organizational health literacy“ is the degree to which organizations equitably enable individuals to find, understand and use information and services to inform health-related decisions and actions for themselves and others.” On the other hand, personal health literacy“ is the degree to which individuals have the ability to find, understand and use information and services to inform health-related decisions and actions for themselves and others.”
Those who lack access to health information and / or don’ t know how to use this information to make informed decisions are considered to have low health literacy. Those with both access to health information and the means to use this info are considered high health literacy. Compared to those with high health literacy, those in the low health literacy group have poorer health outcomes and are more likely to present with more advanced illness and have delays in diagnosis and treatment. This is a wholly correctable problem and is a significant factor contributing to discrepancies in health outcomes.
Our concern over the poorer health outcomes in minority and socio-economically deprived communities led Kathy Mayberry-Washington, Rucell Cobb and me to develop a vehicle in which we could raise health literacy within this and all communities in Kentucky. To reach the most people we created a television program, Louisville Health.
Our aim was to improve health literacy through increased awareness of specific illness and conditions, allay fears and dispel myths and misconceptions about health care. We teach about the recognition and treatment of various illnesses and medical conditions. Hopefully, armed with this new knowledge, patients will become more confident, less anxious, more engaged and more participatory in their care, leading to better health outcomes.
Over the past 30 years Louisville Health has morphed from airing on( continued on page 10) August 2025 9