Glenda Knight - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Glenda Knight

Health literacy is a critical component of healthcare in America (Parker & Gazmararian, 2004). It... more Health literacy is a critical component of healthcare in America (Parker & Gazmararian, 2004). It is a powerful determinant of health status and mortality (DeWalt, Berkman, Sheridan, Lohr, & Pignone, 2004). Still, nearly half of the U.S. adult population has limited health literacy skills. Numerous studies have been conducted and found that limited health literacy is common among patients from every segment of society (Greenberg, 2001). However, there has been very little research that has evaluated the readiness of healthcare professionals to provide adequate health literacy intervention. A key responsibility of nurses is to provide and promote health information (Dunn, 2010a). But, to this researcher"s knowledge, there has been very little research that examined the extent to which nurses are adequately prepared to provide effective health literacy intervention. This study was an examination of the health literacy knowledge and experience of registered nurses. Participants were selected from the population of registered nurses in Georgia. The Health Literacy Knowledge and Experience (HL-KES) survey, which was developed by Dr. Catherine Cormier (Cormier, 2006), was used to examine the health literacy knowledge and experience of registered nurses who had at least three years of nursing experience and were currently practicing in Georgia. The study also examined the relationship between health literacy knowledge and health literacy experience. My first offer of gratitude is extended to my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. I sincerely thank God for sustaining me throughout this process. It also gives me great pleasure to thank the members of my committee. To the Chair of my committee, Dr. Maria Martinez Witte, I am indebted to you and will always remember your encouragement, enthusiasm, and unyielding support. Thank you for the tremendous patience you exhibited. To Dr. James Witte who shared invaluable advice and inspired me to believe, you represent the ideals of adult education. Your approach to helping candidates learn to write a dissertation is second to none. Thank you for your wise counsel and support. To Dr. Margaret Ross who provided methods and statistical consultation, you have the gift of making the complex seem simple. Thank you for your support and timely responses. To Dr. Chih-hsuan Wang who assisted with statistics, thank you for your ability to exhibit calm and confidence. To Dr. Libba McMillan who served as an outside reader, thank you for the expeditious feedback, sharing of industry experience and willingness to serve. I dedicate this dissertation to my mother, Catherine McCollom, and grandmother, Ella Benson. I thank them for instilling in me a can-do spirit! I thank my daughters, Rhonda and Karen for their love and support, and I thank my precious granddaughters, Gabriella (Gabbie) and Isabella (Izzie) for understanding that at some point Meme would spend more time with them. Finally, I am extremely grateful to my husband, Leonard C. Knight. Thank you for the continuous support you unselfishly provide. I love you.

The design of the U.S. healthcare system along with increasing expectations of individuals create... more The design of the U.S. healthcare system along with increasing expectations of individuals create barriers to health care. One barrier is limited Health Literacy (HL). This essential healthcare ingredient is often disregarded (Murphy-Knoll, 2007). There is debate concerning the definition of HL (Sorensen, Van den Broucke, Fullam, Doyle, Pelikan, Slonska, & Brand, 2012). Still, there is consensus that HL is necessary for quality healthcare (Parker & Gazmararian, 2003) and that HL deficiencies must be addressed. Limited HL independently contributes to poorer health status, greater risk of hospitalizations, and increased likelihood of mortality (Hanchate, Ash, Gazmararian, Wolf, & Paasche-Orlow, 2008; Jeppesen, Coyle, & Miser, 2009). Much is known about HL. Still, few advancements have been made due to gaps between what we know about HL, and the application of that knowledge (Ishikiawa & Kiuchi, 2010). The purpose of this chapter is to provide a HL overview and recommend improvement st...

Advances in Human Services and Public Health