The pedagogical requirements of patient E-health education to increase health literacy

Evidence shows that increasing patients´ health literacy can significantly improve their quality of life. This paper explains through education theory how health literacy is linked to the way that a person learns, and how this affects the accuracy and long term retention of information. Special attention is paid to the measurement of learning, and how reducing the literacy requirement of information may raise knowledge test scores but reduce long term recall and usability of information, as well as inhibit the patient from accessing more technical information. The paper then proposes a set of requirements for a differentiated patient E-health education system designed to support learners moving from functional to interactive health literacy levels. By doing this, we can increase health literacy, enable patients to read more technically difficult documents, communicate more effectively, and access additional learning material to take control of their own health needs.