League of
California Cities Shines Spotlight on
Library’s Health Literacy Program
Literacy Update: July 2015
Listed as a “California City Solution,” the Azusa
City Library’s health literacy program was featured in a League of California
Cities newsletter on May 18, 2015. The “English Lessons for a Healthy Life”
classes were created in 2012 to provide adults an opportunity to learn how to
improve their health as the context for learning to speak English. The program
is offered in partnership with the Azusa Neighborhood Wellness Center and the
Azusa Pacific University Department of Global Studies, Sociology and TESOL
(Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages).
a program of the Azusa City Library, in
collaboration with the Azusa
Neighborhood Wellness Center and the Azusa
Pacific University Department of TESOL (Teachers of English
to Speakers of Other Languages). Based on the belief that literacy is not an
end in itself, but rather a catalyst to transform lives, Health Literacy
Learning classes focus on English vocabulary, grammar, conversations, and
reading and writing exercises related to topics such as nutrition, exercise and
preventing disease. Health Literacy Learning students learn English while they
explore choices and behaviors that lead to healthy lives for them and their
families.
This unique collaboration was established by The
Literacy Program of the Azusa City Library. Supervised APU TESOL Department
students teach the classes. Neighborhood Wellness Center nursing students visit
the classes weekly to record students’ blood pressure and steps walked (from
pedometers provided to students) and answer health-related questions. Two
levels of classes are offered. Each is scheduled twice a week, for 8-week
sessions.
Health Literacy Learning was developed with
funding from the Canyon City Foundation.
What is Health Literacy?
Health literacy, as defined by the U.S. Department
of Health and Human Services (Healthy People
2020), is “the degree to which individuals have the capacity
to obtain, process, and understand basic health information and services needed
to make appropriate health decisions.”
Did You Know...
• Poor health literacy is “a stronger predictor of
a person’s health than age, income, employment status, education level, and
race.” (Report on the Council of Scientific Affairs, Ad Hoc Committee on Health
Literacy for the Council on Scientific Affairs, American Medical Association,
JAMA, Feb 10, 1999)
• In one California study, 65% of participants with
low reading skills reported they avoid going to the doctor because of
difficulties with paperwork; 75% of medical professionals said they were aware
of medical errors that were the product of low literacy.
• Among patients with Type 2 diabetes, low health
literacy is associated with worse glycemic control and higher rates of
retinopathy. (Dean Schillinger, Ph.D., Journal of the American Medical
Association July 24,31,2002)
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