The National Council to Improve Patient Safety Through Health Literacy, the Memory Keepers Medical Discovery Team (MDT), and other partnering health literacy experts organized this virtual event. The October 2023 event brought together policymakers, media, health professionals, researchers, educators, healthcare leadership, and advocates to address health literacy and advocate for systems-level policy change to improve clear health communication across the nation.
The event consisted of the following:
- Karen Komondor, founder/president of Health Literacy 360, facilitated the event. She spoke about the implications of health literacy for individuals, communities, and the nation.
- Kristen Jacklin from Memory Keepers MDT discussed the organization's work to promote health literacy among American Indian people.
- Cindy Brach, senior healthcare researcher at AHRQ and cochair of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Health Literacy Workgroup, talked about HHS’s efforts to promote personal and organizational health literacy via the National Action Plan, tools, and trainings.
- Helen Osborne, host of the Health Literacy Out Loud podcast, founder of Health Literacy Month, and founder of Health Literacy Consulting, spoke about how Health Literacy Month began.
- Catina O’Leary, president and CEO of Health Literacy Media, spoke about state health literacy proclamations and the State Health Literacy Proclamation Toolkit.
- Stan Hudson, health literacy director of Wisconsin Health Literacy, moderated a panel on health literacy.
- Greg O’Neil, manager of patient and family health education at Christiana Care, served on the panel. He talked about what health systems can do to promote health literacy.
- Mary Ann Abrams, primary care pediatrician at Nationwide Children’s Hospital and assistant professor at The Ohio State University College of Medicine, served on the panel. She talked about what providers can do to promote health literacy.
- Wilma Alvarado-Little, associate commissioner of the NYS Department of Health and director of the NYS Office of Minority Health and Health Disparities Prevention, served on the panel. She talked about what governments can do to promote health literacy.
- Daniella Gratale, associate vice president of federal affairs at Nemours Children’s Health, served on the panel. She talked about how health educators can promote health literacy in children and adolescents.
- Teresa Wagner, assistant professor at the University of Texas Health Science Center and founder/interim director of SaferCare Texas, talked about advocating for health literacy in Texas.
- Cynthia Baur, endowed chair and director of the Horowitz Center for Health Literacy and professor at the University of Maryland, spoke about advocating for health literacy in Maryland.
- Michael Villaire, president/CEO of the Institute for Healthcare Advancement, spoke about IHA’s Health Literacy Solutions Center and Health Literacy Specialist Certificate program.
- Genelle Lamont, assistant professor at University of Minnesota, member of Memory Keepers MDT, and interim chair of Minnesota Health Literacy Partnership, offered closing remarks and calls to action.