Prehospital emergency health literacy assessment of patients in primary healthcare service

The present study aims to develop a measurement tool to determine the level of health literacy (HL) of individuals applying to Primary Healthcare Service (PHS) regarding the use of emergency health services and to evaluate the study group in terms of Prehospital Emergency Health Literacy (PHEHL). The first stage of the study was carried out on individuals over 18 years of age who applied to 604 PHS to develop Prehospital Emergency Health Literacy Scale (PHEHLS) and Emergency Call Scale (ECS). In the second stage, PHEHLS and ECS were administered to 1255 individuals. The level of PHEHL was above the mean in 67.7% of the study group. The predictors of PHEHL score increase were found to include persons aged between 18-24 years, having a university degree or higher, being unmarried, having a moderate family income, having good health status, having health insurance, and calling the emergency call center for appropriate reasons according to ECS. The PHEHLS is a reliable and valid scale regarding the determination of the level of HL in this subject. Only one in four people in the study group called the helpline for an appropriate reason.