Dr. Rudd discussed the need to address health literacy involving not only patients, but also healthcare professionals and institutions. “Are we measuring communication skills in healthcare professions?” she asked. The expert said that it is unfair to expect the patient to bear all the responsibility for self-care. Dr. Rudd has dedicated her career to studying the literacy-related barriers that patients encounter in the healthcare system.
After the lecture, there was a roundtable discussion on the current challenges in promoting self-care skills in patients suffering from chronic illnesses. The participants were María de las Mercedes Vinuesa from the Spanish Ministry of Health, Social Services and Equality; Camille Bullot from the European Patients’ Forum; Assumpció González, the Head of the Catalan Ministry of Health’s Expert Patient Programme; and Emilia Arrighi, the Head of Research at the IGS.
The findings of the conference included the importance of training professionals and patients in self-care, the need to improve communication among healthcare professionals, the need to create accessible materials that are easy for patients to grasp, and the need to make healthcare centres more accessible.
The opening ceremony was attended by Dr. Antoni Mateu, the Catalan Secretary of Public Health; Susana Guitar, the Associate Director of Public and Government Affairs at MSD; Dr. Albert Balaguer, the Dean of the UIC Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences; and Dr. María Dolors Navarro, the Director of the IGS.
“With this conference, the institute hopes to confirm the work it’s been doing in the area of health literacy and the development of self-care training strategies for professionals and patients”, said Dr. Navarro.
Susana Guitar, the Associate Director of Public and Government Affairs at MSD, highlighted the importance of providing patients with information about their condition to enable them to manage their own health by making informed decisions with their healthcare provider. It also improves the effectiveness of public resources by building up trust in the healthcare system. “As a pharmaceutical company, MSD is committed to people’s health as well as health education, which is why we provide reliable, accurate and useful information through initiatives, projects and other tools, such as The Merck Manual Home Health Handbook and the MSD health website, in order to reach 21st-century patients, who are active, educated, informed and, above all, committed to their own health”, said Guitar.
THE ALBERT JOVELL INSTITUTE OF PUBLIC HEALTH AND PATIENTS
During the conference “Health Literacy and Self-Care: New Challenges”, it was announced that the name of the UIC's Global Institute of Public Health and Health Policy had been changed to the Albert Jovell Institute of Public Health and Patients. As part of the conference, a tribute was paid to Dr. Albert J. Jovell, the founder and first director of the IGS, a position he held until he passed away on 26 November 2013. Dr. Jovell was a doctor specializing in preventive medicine and health policy with an extensive and celebrated professional, academic and research career. In October 2013, he was awarded the Dr. Josep Trueta Health Merit medal by the Catalan government for his professional career. Dr. María Dolors Navarro is the current director of the IGS.
