Paul Andrew Bourne
Health literacy and health seeking behavior among older men in a middle-income nation
abstract health literacy measure patients ability read comprehend act medical instructions research article examines health literacy healthseeking behaviors among elderly men jamaica order inform health policy descriptive crosssectional study 133item questionnaire administered random sample 2000 men 55 years older st catherine jamaica study 569 urban 445 rural residents health literate 340 participants purchased medications prescribed medical doctor 198 currently smoking despite reported good selfrelated health status 744 high cognitive functionality 941 older men 79 sought medical care outside experiencing illnesses thirtyseven percent rural participants sought medical care ill compared 319 urban counterparts thirtyfour percent participants took medication prescribed medical doctor 43 selfreported diagnosed cancers prostate colorectal last 6 months 96 hypertension 53 heart disease 53 benign prostatic hyperplasia 53 diabetes mellitus 38 kidneybladder problems approximately 14 24 participants indicated unaware signs symptoms hypertension diabetes mellitus respectively elderly men displayed low health literacy poor healthseeking behavior findings used guide formulation health policies intervention programs elderly men jamaica keywords health literacy health status lifestyle practices older men healthseeking behavior