Health literacy and its role within cardiovascular disease: a primer from a cardiology perspective

Crystal Williamson; Yingyan Chen; Tuppence Richman; Kim Greaves

doi:10.1080/28355245.2025.2590786

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Health literacy and its role within cardiovascular disease: a primer from a cardiology perspective

Journal article

Open access

Peer reviewed

Health literacy and its role within cardiovascular disease: a primer from a cardiology perspective

Crystal Williamson, Yingyan Chen, Tuppence Richman and Kim Greaves

Health Literacy and Communication Open, Vol.3(1), pp.1-13

2025

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/28355245.2025.2590786

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Abstract

cardiac rehabilitation (CR)

cardiovascular disease (CVD)

coronary artery disease (CAD)

Health literacy (HL)

patient knowledge

risk factors

patient comprehension

consulttions

prevention

disease

healthcare burden

society

medicine

doctor

patient

digital health literacy

communication

patient outcomes

Introduction Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of mortality and morbidity worldwide. Cardiovascular disease is preventable by managing modifiable risk factors, but this requires support to improve patients’ health literacy. Patients with cardiovascular disease have significant challenges understanding and engaging with healthcare, which can compromise their health outcomes. Aims This commentary reviews relationships between health literacy and cardiovascular disease and proposes recommendations for improving cardiovascular management in healthcare settings. Results Improving health literacy is a significant issue in cardiovascular disease prevention. There are factors that are associated with health literacy at both individual and system levels which may influence a patient’s health literacy. Health professionals can support heart health literacy through checking their patients’ health literacy needs, being aware of their own misconceptions and biases, using written, verbal, and visual communication strategies that are easy to understand, and avoiding unexplained medical jargon. Organisations can support this through training multidisciplinary teams and providing clear discharge information that patients can understand and act on. Conclusion Supporting health literacy among cardiovascular disease patients is paramount to (1) enable patients to regain control over their health, (2) decrease cardiovascular disease hospital admissions and (3) reduce costs to the public health sector. Both individual and system level interventions are needed to support heart health literacy and improve patient outcomes in healthcare settings.

Details

Title: Health literacy and its role within cardiovascular disease: a primer from a cardiology perspective
Authors: Crystal Williamson (Corresponding Author) - Sunshine Coast University Hospital
Yingyan Chen - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Health - Nursing
Tuppence Richman - Sunshine Coast University Hospital
Kim Greaves - Sunshine Coast University Hospital
Publication details: Health Literacy and Communication Open, Vol.3(1), pp.1-13
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Group Ltd.
Date published: 2025
DOI: 10.1080/28355245.2025.2590786
ISSN: 2835-5245
Copyright note: © 2025 The Author(s). Published with license by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. The terms on which this article has been published allow the posting of the Accepted Manuscript in a repository by the author(s) or with their consent.
Organisation Unit: School of Health - Nursing; School of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Legacy
Language: English
Record Identifier: 991184289602621
Output Type: Journal article

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