Differences in health information literacy among older adults, elderly and younger citizens #ecil2018

Heidi Enwald from university of Oulu presented an international collaboration between universities in Sweden and Finland. There is a need to understand the IL competencies in the health arena among older people, and the differences between them and other age groups.  The research aimed to discover perceptions of health information literacy competencies, and differences between different age groups.  A survey was distributed through the Swedish health record system, and health IL was measured through 11 statements on self perceived competence previously used by Niemela et al. (2012). 2587 responses were received, 67% were female, and the mean age was 50.65. Respondents were grouped into 3 ages, elderly born 1945 or earlier. Respondents agreed that it was important to be informed about health issues. Older adults were more likely to value being informed about health issues, but had more difficulty understanding the terminology used. They were less likely than younger adults to compare information from multiple sources, and had more difficulty understanding medicine packaging and labels.