Abstract

Worldwide health literacy levels are low. Nurses should be able to lead the improvement of the health literacy of the populations they serve. During a comprehensive review of the literature, it became apparent that previous research regarding the provision of health literacy education within Associate Degree Nursing programs was not available. The Associate Degree is the initial degree that allows the graduate to take the NCLEX-RN board exam, so it was interesting to determine how learners are prepared to discern the health literacy levels of the patient population. The research question, "How do nurse educators describe their experiences with health literacy education within the Associate Degree Nursing program?" was addressed through the collection and analysis of the subjective responses of practicing nurse educators. The basic qualitative research methodology using guided interview questions was most appropriate for this study. The sample consisted of eight nurse educators teaching in Associate Degree Nursing programs over the age of 30 who possessed, at minimum, a Master's Degree. Data analysis occurred through the thorough review of each transcribed interview, both manually and using the Quirkos 2.0 data analysis program to determine the presence of themes and sub-themes. Compilation of the results led to the conclusion that there remains a lack of knowledge regarding health literacy among nurse educators. In addition, communication methods lack the necessary focus on health literacy in the education of both nursing students and during patient teaching. The results of this study could benefit not only nurse educators and students but all healthcare personnel through an enhanced focus on improving the education provided regarding health literacy. An improved understanding of how to determine health literacy and provide appropriate education could lead to improved levels of health literacy in populations worldwide.

Description

This dissertation has also been disseminated through the ProQuest Dissertations and Theses database. Dissertation/thesis number: 31561131; ProQuest document ID: 3102294355. The author still retains copyright.

Author Details

Connie Marshall, PhD

Sigma Membership

Omega Gamma

Type

Dissertation

Format Type

Text-based Document

Study Design/Type

N/A

Research Approach

Qualitative Research

Keywords:

Health Literacy, Nursing Education, Teaching Experiences

Advisor

Janie Canty-Mitchell

Second Advisor

Eric Parks

Third Advisor

Christopher Rasmussen

Degree

PhD

Degree Grantor

Capella University

Degree Year

2024

Rights Holder

All rights reserved by the author(s) and/or publisher(s) listed in this item record unless relinquished in whole or part by a rights notation or a Creative Commons License present in this item record.

All permission requests should be directed accordingly and not to the Sigma Repository.

All submitting authors or publishers have affirmed that when using material in their work where they do not own copyright, they have obtained permission of the copyright holder prior to submission and the rights holder has been acknowledged as necessary.

Review Type

None: Degree-based Submission

Acquisition

Proxy-submission

Full Text of Presentation

wf_yes

Download

Share

COinS