Elizabeth Mansfield|Rana Wahba|Doris E. Gillis|Barry D. Weiss|Mary R. L’Abbé
Canadian adaptation of the Newest Vital Sign<sup>©</sup>, a health literacy assessment tool
Health Canada|Health Canada|St. Francis Xavier University|University of Arizona|University of Toronto
newest vital sign nvs developed usa measure patient health literacy clinical settings adapted nvs use canada english french created computerized version objective evaluate reliability canadian nvs selfadministered computerized toolwe used randomized crossover design washout period 34 weeks compare health literacy scores obtained using computerized version scores obtained using standard intervieweradministered nvs anova models mcnemars tests assessed differences outcomes assessed version nvs order effects testingparticipants recruited multicultural catchment areas ontario nova scotiaenglish frenchspeaking adults aged 18 years oldera total 180 81 222 adults 112 english110 french initially recruited completed interviewernvs computernvs scores completed assessments ranged 0 6 mean 363 sd 211 computerized nvs 341 sd 221 interviewadministered nvs n 18 seven english eleven french participants health literacy assessments differed two versionsoverall computerized canadian nvs performed well intervieweradministered version assessing health literacy levels english frenchspeaking participants canadian adaptation nvs provides canadian researchers public health practitioners easily administered health literacy assessment tool used address needs canadians across health literacy levels ultimately improve health outcomes