Effectiveness of the health literacy education program for medical student clerkships: a one-group pretest-posttest...

Low health literacy is linked to poorer quality of life and health outcomes. However, one-third of healthcare professionals lacked awareness or understanding. This highlights the importance of incorporating health literacy into the education of healthcare professionals. Our study aimed to integrate health literacy into medical clerkship curricula and evaluate the effectiveness of educational programs.

We recruited fifth-year medical students in the family medicine clerkship from October 2023 to January 2026. The health literacy education program included lectures, simulated case-based videos in the classroom, and observation and hands-on practice in a real-world clinic. The post-lecture quiz was taken to assess foundational health literacy concepts following the lecture course. The Health Literacy Scale specific for Taiwan questionnaires were used to measure the health literacy competencies of pre- and post-survey.

A total of 109 participants demonstrated significant improvements in self-awareness and confidence across all four dimensions, and all changes were statistically significant. The mean score for the Concept and Evaluation Dimension increased from 4.13 to 4.69, representing a 13.48% gain, while the Acceptance and Respect Dimension rose from 4.07 to 4.58, corresponding to a 12.56% increase. The Communication and Interaction Dimension rose from 3.77 to 4.58 (a 21.52% increase), and the Medical Information and Decision-Making Dimension increased from 3.79 to 4.56 (a 20.22% increase). In the multiple-choice questions within the Concept and Evaluation Dimension, the average score improved from 4.11 to 5.30 points, reflecting a 29.02% increase. In the quiz conducted after class, the participants' average score was 15.55 out of 18.

Comparing pre- and post-surveys results suggested an overall positive impact of the program, with participants reporting improvement in the participants' competence, self-confidence, familiarity with health literacy, and communication skills. The results demonstrated that health literacy lessons and real-world clinical learning, observation, and practice were effective in improving health literacy competencies for medical students.

This research was approved by the Institutional Review Board of MacKay Memorial Hospital (IRB No. 23MMHIS404e).