The meaning of numbers in health: exploring health numeracy in a Mexican-American population.
J Gen Intern Med
; 26(7): 705-11, 2011 Jul.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-21336671
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
Health numeracy can be defined as the ability to use numeric information in the context of health. The interpretation and application of numbers in health may vary across cultural groups.OBJECTIVE:
To explore the construct of health numeracy among persons who identify as Mexican American.DESIGN:
Qualitative focus group study. Groups were stratified by preferred language and level of education. Audio-recordings were transcribed and Spanish groups (n = 3) translated to English. An analysis was conducted using principles of grounded theory.PARTICIPANTS:
A purposeful sample of participants from clinical and community sites in the Milwaukee and Chicago metropolitan areas. MAINMEASURES:
A theoretical framework of health numeracy was developed based upon categories and major themes that emerged from the analysis. KEYRESULTS:
Six focus groups were conducted with 50 participants. Initial agreement in coding was 59-67% with 100% reached after reconciliation by the coding team. Three major themes emerged 1) numeracy skills are applied to a broad range of communication and decision making tasks in health, 2) affective and cognitive responses to numeric information influence use of numbers in the health setting, and 3) there exists a strong desire to understand the meaning behind numbers used in health. The findings informed a theoretical framework of health numeracy.CONCLUSIONS:
Numbers are important across a range of skills and applications in health in a sample of an urban Mexican-American population. This study expands previous work that strives to understand the application of numeric skills to medical decision making and health behaviors.
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Conhecimentos, Atitudes e Prática em Saúde
/
Educação em Saúde
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Americanos Mexicanos
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Matemática
Tipo de estudo:
Prognostic_studies
/
Qualitative_research
Limite:
Adult
/
Aged
/
Aged80
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Female
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Humans
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Male
/
Middle aged
País/Região como assunto:
America do norte
/
Mexico
Idioma:
En
Revista:
J Gen Intern Med
Assunto da revista:
MEDICINA INTERNA
Ano de publicação:
2011
Tipo de documento:
Article
País de afiliação:
Estados Unidos