Identifying Core Variables Associated With Health Literacy in Kidney Transplant Recipients

Abstract

Background: A kidney transplantation requires complex self-care skills and adequate follow-up from health-care providers. Identifying strengths and limitations in different aspects of health literacy (HL) and associated variables are central to being able to improve health care. The objective of this study was to identify core variables associated with independent domains of HL 8 weeks following a kidney transplantation. Methods: A single-center cross-sectional study was conducted, wherein 159 kidney transplant recipients answered the Health Literacy Questionnaire (HLQ). Multivariable linear regression with backward elimination was used to investigate variables possibly associated with the 9 domains of HL. Results: The transplant recipients had the lowest scores in “appraisal of health information” and “navigating the healthcare system.” The highest scores were found in “feeling understood and supported by health-care providers” and “ability to actively engage with health-care provider.” General perceived self-efficacy, transplant-specific knowledge, and general health were the driving variables in several of the HL domains. Conclusions: The HLQ provides a more complex picture of strengths and limitations related to HL, as well as important knowledge about vulnerable groups following a kidney transplantation. The study offers an important supplement to the field of HL in kidney transplant care.

Parents of children with epilepsy: Characteristics associated with high and low levels of health literacy

“…In contrast to other studies measuring self-reported HL in persons looking after their own health [13,26,45], we found that the parents reported an overall high ability to manage their child's health. This result may indicate that the parents were highly motivated and capable of trying to provide the best available health service to their child, which is an important starting point to receive health information and guidance.…”

<p>Knowledge About Immunosuppressant Medication and Its Correlates in a German Kidney Transplant Population – Results of a KTx360° Substudy</p>

“…We can hypothesize in line with Lee et al 28 that the partner might influence health-related decisions and might assimilate and digest information, just like the patient. 29 Other studies suggest that social contacts might be an important source of medical information. 30 When looking at the concept of HL, this phenomenon is called distributed literacy by Edwards et al 31 and emphasizes the positive influence of social support on HL and healthrelated behavior.…”

“…This result is in accordance with recent literature. 29,32 While a language barrier is a prominent aspect hindering patients from acquiring sufficient knowledge or from understanding the questions on a self-rating instrument correctly, other reasons might be of importance as well. Schouten et al 33 suggest that cultural differences can influence the patients' • Before intake 93.7%…”

A scoping review of the role of health literacy in chronic kidney disease self‐management

“…Of the six studies that used the HLQ (see Table S4), the highest scores were obtained for the domains 'healthcare provider support' (Dahl et al, 2020;Demian et al, 2016;Dodson et al, 2016;Stømer et al, 2019), 'social support' (Griva et al, 2020;Skoumalova et al, 2019) and 'active engagement' (Dahl et al, 2020;Dodson et al, 2016;Griva et al, 2020;Skoumalova et al, 2019;Stømer et al, 2019). The lowest scores were obtained for the domains 'critical appraisal' (Dahl et al, 2020;Demian et al, 2016;Dodson et al, 2016;Griva et al, 2020;Skoumalova et al, 2019;Stømer et al, 2019), 'finding good health information' (Demian et al, 2016;Dodson et al, 2016;Griva et al, 2020;Stømer et al, 2019), and 'navigating the healthcare system' (Dahl et al, 2020;Skoumalova et al, 2019). Lambert et al (2015), using the HeLMS found that individuals had lower scores for domains 'attitudes towards their health' and 'socioeconomic factors'.…”

“…One study examined the relationship between health literacy and transplantation knowledge (Dahl et al, 2020) and found that higher knowledge scores were associated with greater health literacy (see Table S6). Knowledge was the driving factor for the domains 'healthcare provider support' and 'understanding of health information'.…”