Health Literacy: A Critical Public Health Issue
Health literacy means understanding the language of health. It is the ability to read, understand, and act on health information. Anyone of any age, income, race, background, or reading skill level can find it hard to understand health information.
Pfizer believes that improving health literacy is everyone’s responsibility because understanding health information is everyone’s right.
Pfizer is committed to providing, and to helping others provide, quality health information to patients in a way that they can understand and act upon in order to improve health outcomes.
The Pfizer Health Literacy Initiative
The Pfizer Health Literacy Initiative is a multi-faceted, multi-disciplinary effort designed to improve patient health outcomes through helping individuals to better understand health care information. Pfizer has raised awareness and supported study of this emerging public health issue for the past five years through annual conferences and research grants. Under the leadership of the Pfizer Public Health Group and the combined efforts of a number of other departments in the corporation, this long-standing initiative has expanded to include the following components:
Partnerships, Awareness, & Education
- Partnership with the American Medical Association Foundation
- Pfizer National Health Literacy Conference
- Support of the National Health Council Health Literacy Training
- The Newest Vital Sign
- The Pfizer Clear Health Communication Initiative
- Pfizer Health Literacy Initiative Grants Program
- Pfizer Principles for Clear Health Communication
- Partnership with the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration
- Know Your Health
For further information about Health Literacy and Pfizer’s Health Literacy Initiative, please visit www.clearhealthcommunication.org