Survey on the Current Status of Health Literacy of Urban and Rural Residents in Shandong Province

Objective To learn the status of health literacy of urban and rural residents in Shandong Province.Methods Using multi-stage stratified random cluster sampling,8 546 urban and rural residents were selected to complete the face-to-face survey in 2008.Health literacy questionnaire for Chinese citizen in 2008 was designed by Ministry of Health.Results The proportion of urban and rural residents with health literacy was 14.93% and 2.18% respectively.The proportion of urban residents with basic health concept knowledge,healthy lifestyle behaviors,and health related skills was 26.91%,14.89% and 35.52% respectively,and that of rural residents was 8.34%,2.09% and 14.65% respectively.The proportion of urban residents with scientific attitude towards health,literacy of safety and first aid,infectious diseases prevention,basic medical care,and chronic diseases prevention was 40.11%,27.49%,8.24%,33.09% and 16.27% respectively,and that of rural residents was 22.65%,8.97%,1.07%,10.10% and 4.03% respectively.Conclusion There was significant difference in the proportion with health literacy between urban residents and rural residents in Shandong Province.The proportion of urban residents was higher than that of rural residents.Different strategies should be developed on health literacy promotion according to the characteristics of populations.