The Essential Role of Health Information Literacy in Seniors' Healthcare Communication

Older people clearly have their own health issues, of which interacting with health information both in their everyday life and in healthcare contexts is a major one. This chapter discusses health information behavior in older people, that is, their interest in, seeking activity, and the sources used for health information, as well as their health information literacy, what it is, how it can be measured, and its relation to the more widely used and broader concept of health literacy. Empirical results on how older Finnish people experience communication in healthcare contexts and what kind of role health information literacy can play concerning perceptions of patient–practitioner communication quality are presented. Studies have looked at the influence of demographic factors on health information seeking and use; how senior citizens comprehend health information and what impact e-health literacy interventions have.