The impact of health literacy, patient-centered communication and shared decision-making on patients' satisfaction with care received in German primary care practices.

Background: Findings on the association between health literacy skills and patient-reported outcomes such as satisfaction with health care delivery are scarce. We explored the extent to which subjective health literacy skills and the perception of the application of patient-centered communication and shared decision-making are associated with patient's satisfaction with care received by their general practitioner (GP).

Methods: A nationwide cross sectional survey was administered in a random sample of 1125 German adults.

Parental views on acute otitis media (AOM) and its therapy in children--results of an exploratory survey in German childcare facilities.

Background: Acute otitis media (AOM) is one of the main reasons for medical consultation and antibiotic use during childhood. Although 80% of AOM cases are self-limiting, antibiotic prescription is still high, either for physician- or for parent-related factors. This study aims to identify parental knowledge about, beliefs and attitudes towards, and experiences with AOM and its therapy and thus to gain insights into parents' perspectives within the German health care system.

Impact of health literacy, accessibility and coordination of care on patient's satisfaction with primary care in Germany.

Background: Although health policy makers call for the transformation of health care organizations to health literacy responsive ones, there is limited evidence on the care experiences of patients with limited health literacy skills (HL) in respect to health care quality. We explored if HL and patient-reported experiences regarding access to care and support in care-coordination in primary care organizations (PCO) have an impact on patients satisfaction with the care received by their personal general practitioner (GP).

Methods: A nationwide representative survey was administered in a random sample of 1125 German adults.

[How can we measure cancer literacy?--A systematic review on the quality of available measurement tools].

Background And Objectives: Health literacy denoted as the ability to search for, understand and use health related information in health care decision-making is becoming increasingly important for complex chronic diseases such as cancer. There is growing evidence that limited health literacy has a negative impact on individual cancer prevention and disease coping behavior suggesting that interventions for quality assurance in cancer care should consider the health literacy of the target population. This poses the question of how cancer literacy should be operationalized and measured.

Development and validation of a brief screener to measure the Health Literacy Responsiveness of Primary Care Practices (HLPC).

Background: The evolving approach of health literate health care organizations (HLHO) receives considerable support from health policy makers. Up to now, there are no performance measures available to assess the application of health literacy strategies by health care professionals in the primary care setting. This paper describes the development and validation of the Health Literate Primary Care Practice screener (HLPC).

The evolution of health literacy assessment tools: a systematic review.

Background: Health literacy (HL) is seen as an increasingly relevant issue for global public health and requires a reliable and comprehensive operationalization. By now, there is limited evidence on how the development of tools measuring HL proceeded in recent years and if scholars considered existing methodological guidance when developing an instrument.

Methods: We performed a systematic review of generic measurement tools developed to assess HL by searching PubMed, ERIC, CINAHL and Web of Knowledge (2009 forward).

Barriers in the implementation of interprofessional continuing education programs--a qualitative study from Germany.

Background: Insufficient communication and coordination is one of the most problematic issues in German health care delivery leading to detrimental effects on health care outcomes. As a consequence interprofessional continuing education (CIPE) is gathering momentum in German health policy and health care practice aiming to enhance service quality and patient safety. Nevertheless, there is limited evidence on the course of implementation and the perceived effectiveness/acceptance of CIPE in German health care.