Evaluation of health literacy in lung transplant candidates

Abstract

Understanding health literacy is critical to making informed decisions in healthcare. To date, there are no studies regarding the landscape of health literacy in patients undergoing lung transplant evaluation. In this single center prospective pilot study, patients undergoing evaluation for lung transplantation participated in a pre-transplant education class followed by an educational assessment administered electronically. The Brief Health Literacy Screening Tool (BRIEF) was then electronically administered to assess health literacy among patients. Thirty patients participated. Most patients (77%) demonstrated adequate health literacy. The pre-transplant education assessment score and BRIEF survey scores correlated (R=0.43 [95% CI 0.06–0.70, P =0.025]). Inadequate/marginal health literacy was seen in 13% (2/16) of patients listed for transplant and 36% (5/14) of patients not listed for transplant (p=0.37).