Development and Validation of a Health Literacy Scale for Patients With Cardiovascular Disease (HLS-CVD)

Assessing health literacy has become important as a component of strategies to increase self-care behaviour for patients with cardiovascular disease (CVD).

This study aimed to develop a scale for measuring health literacy in patients with CVD and to evaluate its reliability and validity.

This is an instrument development study with a psychometric analysis. The initial questions were based on the components identified in a concept analysis, and the reliability and validity were evaluated with 391 patients visiting outpatient hospitals due to CVD such as myocardial infarction, arrhythmia and heart failure.

The final scale consisted of 22 items across four factors: 'Understanding and searching for health information', 'Actively selecting and evaluating health information', 'Utilization of health information resources' and 'Interacting with healthcare providers'. The four-factor structure demonstrated acceptable model fit in confirmatory factor analysis. Convergent and criterion validity were supported by significant correlations with established health literacy tools. Internal consistency was high (Cronbach's α = 0.891), and test-retest reliability was satisfactory.

This health literacy scale for patients with CVD can be utilized in future surveys or intervention studies to enhance the self-care behaviour of individuals with CVD. Its psychometric analysis should be repeated with CVD patients in other countries or hospital settings.