•  
  •  
 

Abstract

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted global health security and health. eHealth literacy has played a crucial role in preventing and controlling the disease, particularly among Thai village health volunteers (VHVs).

Methods: This analytic cross-sectional study was conducted from December 2021 to March 2022. It aimed to determine levels of health and eHealth literacy related to COVID-19 among VHVs in four northeastern provinces in Area Health Region Number 7. The measurement tool was the coronavirus-related health literacy (HLS-COVID-Q22) questionnaire with adaptations of Sørensen et al.'s conceptual model of health literacy and the eHealth Literacy Scale (eHEALS).

Results: Among 1,813 VHVs, which represented a 91.01% response rate, 11.50% of them had overall sufficient health literacy competencies related to COVID-19. Four factors were statistically significantly associated with the health literacy level of the VHVs (p < 0.05): educational level greater than secondary school level, a history of underlying disease, working as a VHV for more than ten years, and experience of COVID-19 infection. Receiving COVID-19 information from family members via the LINE communication platform resulted in a protective factor associated with health literacy with statistical significance (p < 0.05).

Conclusions: The majority of the VHVs demonstrated a high level of overall eHealth literacy but a limited level of COVID-19-specific health literacy. Among the four competencies that comprise health literacy, their ability to appraise COVID-19-related health information was the lowest. These findings could indicate the need to improve and update training programs for VHVs, emphasizing enhancing their appraisal skills.

Keywords: COVID-19, eHealth literacy, Health literacy, Village health volunteers

References

[1] Sørensen K, Van den Broucke S, Fullam J, Doyle G, Pelikan J, Slonska Z, et al. Consortium Health Literacy Project European. Health literacy and public health: a systematic review and integration of definitions and models. BMC Public Health. 2012 Jan 25;12:80. doi: 10.1186/1471-2458-12-80.

[2] McQueen DV, Kickbusch I, Potvin L, Pelikan JM. Balbo L, Abel T. Health and modernity: the role of theory in health promotion. New York : Springer; 2007.

[3] Tones K. Health literacy: new wine in old bottles?. Health Education Research. 2002;17(3): 287–290. https://doi.org/10.1093/her/17.3.287

[4] Norman CD, Skinner HA. eHEALS: The eHealth Literacy Scale. J Med Internet Res. 2006 Nov 14;8(4):e27. doi: 10.2196/jmir.8.4.e27.

[5] Lund S, Madgavkar A, Manyika J, Smit J, Ellingrud K, Meaney M, et al., The future of work after COVID-19. San Francisco : McKinsey Global Institute; 2021

[6] World Health Organization [WHO]. The COVID-19 Infodemic. Geneva: WHO; 2022.

[7] Kim HK, Tandoc EC Jr. Consequences of Online Misinformation on COVID-19: Two Potential Pathways and Disparity by eHealth Literacy. Front Psychol. 2022 Feb 14;13:783909. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.783909.

[8] Nguyen MH, Pham TTM, Nguyen KT, Nguyen YH, Tran TV, Do BN, et al. Negative Impact of Fear of COVID-19 on Health-Related Quality of Life Was Modified by Health Literacy, eHealth Literacy, and Digital Healthy Diet Literacy: A Multi-Hospital Survey. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021 May 6;18(9):4929. doi: 10.3390/ijerph18094929.

[9] Do BN, Tran TV, Phan DT, Nguyen HC, Nguyen TTP, Nguyen HC, et al. Health Literacy, eHealth Literacy, Adherence to Infection Prevention and Control Procedures, Lifestyle Changes, and Suspected COVID-19 Symptoms Among Health Care Workers During Lockdown: Online Survey. J Med Internet Res. 2020 Nov 12;22(11):e22894. doi: 10.2196/22894.

[10] Okan O, Bollweg TM, Berens EM, Hurrelmann K, Bauer U, Schaeffer D. Coronavirus-Related Health Literacy: A Cross-Sectional Study in Adults during the COVID-19 Infodemic in Germany. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2020 Jul 30;17(15):5503. doi: 10.3390/ijerph17155503.

[11] Sykes S, Wills J, Trasolini A, Wood K, Frings D. eHealth literacy during the COVID-19 pandemic: seeking, sharing, suspicion amongst older and younger UK populations. Health Promot Int. 2022 Feb 17;37(1):daab103. doi: 10.1093/heapro/daab103.

[12] Li S, Cui G, Kaminga AC, Cheng S, Xu H. Associations Between Health Literacy, eHealth Literacy, and COVID-19-Related Health Behaviors Among Chinese College Students: Cross-sectional Online Study. J Med Internet Res. 2021 May 6;23(5):e25600. doi: 10.2196/25600.

[13] Vicerra PMM. Knowledge-Behavior Gap on COVID-19 among Older People in Rural Thailand. Gerontol Geriatr Med. 2021 Feb 26;7:2333721421997207. doi: 10.1177/2333721421997207.

[14] Thailand, Ministry of Public Health., Regulation on Village Health Volunteers B.E. 2554 (2011). Bangkok : Ministry of Public Health; 2011.

[15] Siewchaisakul P, Sarakarn P, Nanthanangkul S, Longkul J, Boonchieng W, Wungrath J. Role of literacy, fear and hesitancy on acceptance of COVID-19 vaccine among village health volunteers in Thailand. PLoS One. 2022 Jun 24;17(6):e0270023. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0270023.

[16] Yaowakul D, Abdullakasim P. Health literacy on coronavirus disease 2019 prevention behaviors of village health volunteers in region 6 health provider. Chonburi: Burapha University: 2022.

[17] Songserm N, Woradet S, Bureelerd O, Thongchai C, Thongprung S, Ali A. Effectiveness of Leader Village Health Volunteers Training Program on Preventing Cholangiocarcinoma in Thailand: Advantages for High-Risk Area with Limited Public Health Personnel. J Cancer Educ. 2021 Dec;36(6):1306-1315. doi: 10.1007/s13187-020-01768-4.

[18] Jiaviriyaboonya P. Anthropological study of village health volunteers' (VHVs') socio-political network in minimizing risk and managing the crisis during COVID-19. Heliyon. 2022 Jan;8(1):e08654. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2021.e08654.

[19] Pechrapa K, Yodmai K, Kittipichai W, Charupoonpol P, Suksatan W. Health Literacy among Older Adults during COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Study in an Urban Community in Thailand. Ann Geriatr Med Res. 2021 Dec;25(4):309-317. doi: 10.4235/agmr.21.0090.

[20] SiriY, Arthan A, Chutipattana N. Health Literacy and Preventive Behaviors on COVID-19 among Undergraduate Students in a University of Southern Thailand. Disease Control Journal. 2022;48(3): 493-504.

[21] Suanrueang P, Suen MW, Lin HF, Er TK, Michaela Quilang Jamora M. The impact of the covid-19 pandemic on anxiety, health literacy, and eHealth literacy in 2020 related to healthcare behavior in Thailand [Internet]. 2022 Jan. 31 [cited 2023 Nov. 2];20(1):188-202. Available from: https://he01.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/AIHD-MU/article/view/254515

[22] Thai PHC VHV Curriculum Report. Bangkok; 2020.

[23] Suphanchaimat R, Teekasap P, Nittayasoot N, Phaiyarom M, Cetthakrikul N. Forecasted Trends of the New COVID-19 Epidemic Due to the Omicron Variant in Thailand, 2022. Vaccines (Basel). 2022 Jun 27;10(7):1024. doi: 10.3390/vaccines10071024.

[24] Carter AG, Creedy DK, Sidebotham M. Efficacy of teaching methods used to develop critical thinking in nursing and midwifery undergraduate students: A systematic review of the literature. Nurse Educ Today. 2016 May;40:209-18. doi: 10.1016/j.nedt.2016.03.010.

[25] Van Hoa H, Giang HT, Vu PT, Van Tuyen D, Khue PM. Factors Associated with Health Literacy among the Elderly People in Vietnam. Biomed Res Int. 2020 Mar 25;2020:3490635. doi: 10.1155/2020/3490635.

[26] Ginggeaw S, Prasertsri N. The relationship between health literacy and health behaviors among older adults who have multi-morbidity. Nursing Journal of the Ministry of Public Health. 2015; 25(3): 43-54.

[27] Olowe OA, Ross AJ. Knowledge, adherence and control among patients with hypertension attending a peri-urban primary health care clinic, KwaZulu-Natal. Afr J Prim Health Care Fam Med. 2017 Oct 19;9(1):e1-e7. doi: 10.4102/phcfm.v9i1.1456.

[28] Liu YB, Chen YL, Xue HP, Hou P. Health Literacy Risk in Older Adults With and Without Mild Cognitive Impairment. Nurs Res. 2019 Nov/Dec;68(6):433-438. doi: 10.1097/NNR.0000000000000389. Erratum in: Nurs Res. 2020 Jul/Aug;69(4):288.

[29] Ubolwan K, Kheokao J, Yingrengreong S, Chuaintha E Evaluation of factors associated with ehealth literacy among older adult social media users in Thailand. Southeast Asian Journal of Tropical Medicine and Public Health. 2020; 51(5): 754-762.

[30] Buawangpong N, Sirikul W, Anukhro C, Seesen M, La-Up A, Siviroj P. Health Information Sources Influencing Health Literacy in Different Social Contexts across Age Groups in Northern Thailand Citizens. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022 May 16;19(10):6051. doi: 10.3390/ijerph19106051.

[31] WongkongdechR, Tongsiri S, Puangpronpitag D, Wongkongdech A, Kingkaew WM. Lessons Learnedand The Potential Of Thai Vhvs On The Effectiveness Of Covid-19 Control: A Cross-Sectional Study. Journal of Management Information and Decision Sciences. 2022;25(1): 1-121.

[32] Friis K, Lasgaard M, Rowlands G, Osborne RH, Maindal HT. Health Literacy Mediates the Relationship Between Educational Attainment and Health Behavior: A Danish Population-Based Study. J Health Commun. 2016;21(sup2):54-60. doi: 10.1080/10810730.2016.1201175.

[33] Walker LO, Avant KC Strategies for Theory Construction in Nursing. USA : Pearson Education; 1995.

[34] Speros CI. More than Words: Promoting Health Literacy in Older Adults. Online Journal of Issues in Nursing 2009 09;14(3):12.

[35] Svendsen MT, Bak CK, Sørensen K, Pelikan J, Riddersholm SJ, Skals RK, et al. Associations of health literacy with socioeconomic position, health risk behavior, and health status: a large national population-based survey among Danish adults. BMC Public Health. 2020 Apr 28;20(1):565. doi: 10.1186/s12889-020-08498-8.

[36] Bin Naeem S, Kamel Boulos MN. COVID-19 Misinformation Online and Health Literacy: A Brief Overview. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021 Jul 30;18(15):8091. doi: 10.3390/ijerph18158091.

Download

Share

COinS