Sources of information in health education: A cross-sectional study in Portuguese university students

Santos, Paulo; Sá, Luísa; Couto, Luciana; Hespanhol, Alberto

doi:10.21767/amj.2018.3435

Cited by 15 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 21 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…In the study by Schultes (62), various bachelor's degree programs were included and in the study by Sukys et al (63) different health study programs, except for medicine. In other three studies (48,60,64), no conclusion regarding general health literacy is given. Regarding eHealth literacy, authors of two studies (69, 70) speak of medium or higher scores based on a score of their measurement instrument, and the third study (68) made no statement regarding general eHealth literacy levels.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…According to the authors, accessible health services in the population and social understanding of health and disease and media distribution positively correlate with high health literacy levels. Santos et al (60) made no statement regarding overall health literacy due to their specific research question, but found the internet as a poor source for information gathering among students. Compared to the adult population of North-Rhine-Westphalia and the German general population, students surveyed by Schricker et al (61) have shown lower health literacy levels.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Health Literacy Among University Students: A Systematic Review of Cross-Sectional Studies

Kühn

Bachert

Hildebrand

et al. 2022

Front. Public Health

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

ObjectiveThe aim of this systematic review was to provide an overview of cross-sectional studies that examined health literacy among university students and to identify possible determinants related to health literacy.MethodThe current review was conducted according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA). Three databases (PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science) were systematically searched for cross-sectional studies that examined health literacy among university students. Results of included studies were narratively summarized.ResultsThe systematic review includes twenty-one research studies. The majority of studies report health literacy scores among university students that are lower compared to reference samples. The health literacy of students is influenced by different variables (age, gender, number of semesters, course of studies/curriculum, parental education, and socioeconomic background).DiscussionHealth literacy activities should target all students. Universities should make use of their resources and offer health literacy courses for students in which content is used from disciplines available at the university (e.g., medicine, health, or psychology). To increase effectiveness, health literacy courses should be adapted according to the different needs and characteristics of the student subgroups.

show abstract

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 98%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Health Literacy Among University Students: A Systematic Review of Cross-Sectional Studies

Kühn

Bachert

Hildebrand

et al. 2022

Front. Public Health

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…For the younger population, internet has substituted the classical media as the preferred source of mass information, with easily accessible and comprehensive content. However, internet is associated with lower literacy levels [ 17 ], because of the amount of fake information that is disseminated without technical review and appraisal [ 18 ]. Recent studies on digital health literacy about COVID-19 show that, although students generally achieve high levels, they are unable to make judgments about the reliability of online health information [ 19 , 20 , 21 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Impact of Health Literacy on Knowledge and Attitudes towards Preventive Strategies against COVID-19: A Cross-Sectional Study

Silva

Santos

2021

IJERPH

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic introduced a set of mitigation measures based on personal behavior and attitudes. In the absence of vaccination or specific treatment, it became essential to comply with these measures to reduce infection transmission. Health literacy is the basis for changing behaviors. AIM: To characterize the impact of literacy on knowledge and attitudes towards preventive strategies against COVID-19. METHODS: This cross-sectional study involved an online questionnaire applied to students of the University of Porto, Portugal, containing questions about knowledge and attitudes towards COVID-19 based on European guidelines. Health literacy was assessed through the Newest Vital Sign questionnaire. Logistic regression estimated the relationship between health literacy and both knowledge and attitudes. RESULTS: We included 871 participants (76.3% female), with a median age of 22 years old. We found adequate literacy in 92% of our sample, irrespective of gender and age. In the global analysis, 78.6% of the participants had adequate knowledge, and 90.4% had adequate attitudes. We found that better literacy was significantly associated with attitudes towards COVID-19, but not with better knowledge. In a model adjusted for gender, age, and previous education in the health field, female gender and previous education in the health field were associated with better knowledge and attitudes. CONCLUSION: Better health literacy is associated with better attitudes towards preventive strategies against COVID-19. We should invest in ways to improve health literacy, so we can improve people’s attitudes and consequently reduce coronavirus’ transmission.

show abstract

“…Moreover, real-time monitoring through electronic devices is a new way to make students taking sense of their current state, by assessing heart rate, for instance, sending an alert able to remind the need to change attitudes to decrease stress levels [ 43 ]. Information should be easily available in accessible sources, with scientific rigor and topicality [ 44 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Stress among Portuguese Medical Students: A National Cross-Sectional Study

Oura

Moreira

Santos

2020

Journal of Environmental and Public Health

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Introduction. The medical course is extremely stimulating but also demanding, and it can interfere with students’ mental health. Stress leads to lower life quality, academic performance, and ultimately to a lower quality of patient care delivered. Objective. To analyse stress levels of sixth-year medical students who attend Portuguese colleges. Methodology. This observational cross-sectional study involved Portuguese medical students attending the sixth year of all Portuguese faculties. We applied an online self-response questionnaire, including the 10 items Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) to assess stress levels and sociodemographic variables. Logistic regression was used to estimate the weight of the studied determinants on stress levels. Results. A total of 501 participants were included for analysis (69.5% females), with a median age of 24 years old. We found significant levels of stress in 49.9% (95% CI: 45.5–54.3%), with 20.8% of total students presenting extremely high levels, irrespective of age, gender, and faculty. Stress was higher when students presented bad sleeping and eating habits, lack of ability to manage time, dissatisfaction with social life and academic experience, and low family support. Also, these students are more worried about their future and present a higher degree of concern about their graduation test performance. Conclusion. This study found high stress levels among Portuguese medical students, associated with social determinants and the intrinsic complexity of the course. This is worrying, and it elucidates the importance of coping strategies to make students deal with stress and be healthier, currently and in the future.

show abstract

Sources of information in health education: A cross-sectional study in Portuguese university students

Abstract: BackgroundLiteracy is a public health priority. The way people access health information is changing. It's crucial to understand this movement towards new communication tools, to better deal with it.

Cited by 15 publications

References 21 publications

Health Literacy Among University Students: A Systematic Review of Cross-Sectional Studies

Health Literacy Among University Students: A Systematic Review of Cross-Sectional Studies

The Impact of Health Literacy on Knowledge and Attitudes towards Preventive Strategies against COVID-19: A Cross-Sectional Study

Stress among Portuguese Medical Students: A National Cross-Sectional Study

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About