The Effect of Parents' Health Literacy on Primary School Students' Health Screening Results

Overview

Health literacy (HL) is defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) as "the achievement of a level of knowledge, personal skills, and confidence to take action to improve individual and community health by changing personal lifestyles and living conditions". Health literacy is described as a concept encompassing various skills that enhance individuals' quality of life, such as accessing accurate health information, developing healthy living behaviours, utilizing healthcare services, and making health-related decisions. To improve the health literacy of society, it is essential first to identify and enhance the health literacy of families, the smallest unit of the community. Adult family members are responsible for their health and play a critical role in fostering healthy behaviours in their children and addressing their health needs. Aim: Health screenings, particularly for the early diagnosis of health issues in children, are crucial for health preservation and the creation of a healthy society in the future. Therefore, the aim of this study is to determine the health literacy of parents and its impact on the health screening results of students.

Health literacy (HL) is defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) as "the achievement of a level of knowledge, personal skills, and confidence to take action to improve individual and community health by changing personal lifestyles and living conditions". Health literacy is a concept encompassing various skills that enhance individuals' quality of life, such as accessing accurate health information, developing healthy living behaviours, utilizing healthcare services, and making health-related decisions. To improve the health literacy of society, it is essential first to identify and enhance the health literacy of families, the smallest unit of the community. Adult family members are responsible for their health and play a critical role in fostering healthy behaviours in their children and addressing their health needs. It is also known that parents act as role models in developing children's positive health behaviours and enhancing their quality of life. Low health literacy is known to be associated with negative health outcomes in adults. In this context, it is stated that parents who struggle to take responsibility for their health may also face difficulties in meeting their children's health needs, and consequently, inevitably, children frequently encounter health problems. Studies have found that parents with low health literacy struggle with meeting their children's health needs, using healthcare services, taking preventive measures against health risks, proper medication use and monitoring side effects, managing chronic diseases, and encouraging their children to adopt healthy living behaviours. In particular, during the school-age period, which is one of the critical periods for the healthy and successful development of society, as children rapidly develop socially, physically, and cognitively, it is stated that early detection of children's health needs and problems by their parents and the timely receipt of necessary health services can prevent more serious problems that may arise later. In Turkey, recently, the continuous monitoring of the health of schoolchildren, early detection of health risks, and the continuity of practices aimed at promoting health was addressed by the Ministry of National Education, which published the "Regulations on the Working Procedures and Principles of School Health Nurses" on 20/04/2020. As a result, school health nurses have been employed by this regulation. Under the "Regulation on the Amendment of the Nursing Regulation" published by the Ministry of Health in 2011, school health nursing, which is a dimension of public health nursing, includes health screenings as one of the practices that can be carried out independently. Health screenings are crucial for the early diagnosis of children's health problems, health preservation, and the creation of a healthy society in the future. Therefore, the aim of this study is to determine the health literacy of parents and its impact on the health screening results of students. It is believed that the study could contribute to the development of health services and policies aimed at increasing public health and health literacy, preventing health inequalities, and increasing the visibility of school health nursing activities, which are becoming increasingly important. This, in turn, would contribute to the protection and improvement of both parental and child health.