Media and Health Literacy

Abstract

This study proposes to investigate the role of the media source for health information self-reported as the most relevant in Portugal, the TV. Despite the acknowledgement of this mass medium’s value to promote health literacy and namely to elderly people, the nature of the health-related information conveyed by TV has received limited attention. This study aims to fill this gap by investigating the role of TV in mediating the health literacy of the elderly in the country, particularly focused on the topic of navigation in health care which has also received relatively little specific attention. It has therefore a dual foci on what the televised health-related coverage imparts to the public and, the ways in which elderly people interpret these health care representations and apply them to form judgments and take decisions in using the HCS. The results will inform future endeavors to enhance the health literacy of the targeted population through more effective TV health-related communication strategies.