We are in the middle of flu season and it important to be aware that several groups are at at higher risk for influenza complications.  People at elevated risk are:

• American Indians and Alaska Natives
• Children <2 years; adults aged ≥ 65 years
• Residents of nursing homes and other chronic-care facilities
• Persons with certain chronic pulmonary, cardiovascular, renal, hepatic, hematological, metabolic or neurologic and neurodevelopment conditions
• Persons with immunosuppression
• Women who are pregnant or postpartum (within 2 weeks after delivery)
• Persons aged < 19 years who are receiving long-term aspirin therapy
• Persons who are morbidly obese (BMI ≥ 40)

If you have not already been vaccinated, it is not too late.  Please contact your medical provider for more information.  The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention offers information for health professionals as a tool to help public health and healthcare professionals with key information about vaccination, infection control, prevention, treatment, and diagnosis of seasonal influenza.  For more information, visit their web site: http://www.cdc.gov/flu/professionals/index.htm                                                                                  [Urban Indian Health Institute]

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A well done and informative new animated video produced by the Kaiser Family Foundation was recently produced by the Kaiser Family Foundation.       The English version of the animated movie features narration by Cokie Roberts, ABC News and NPR commentator and a member of the Foundation’s Board of Trustees. The English version of the animation is available at:

http://healthreform.kff.org/the-animation.aspx

Spanish language version

http://healthreform.kff.org/la-reforma-del-cuidado-de-la-salud-llega-al-publ

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Do you live in the Southwest Region of the US?  The newest Tox Town scene, US Southwest, provides good information on the hazards of fracking, uranium tailings, and much more. The complete site , provided by the National Library of Medicine, is also available in Spanish.

Visit the site: http://www.toxtown.nlm.nih.gov/flash/southwest/flash.php .

Are you involved in health information literacy in your hospital?  Share your story!  We would love to hear what you are doing and what impact you are having with your users.  Contact your state coordinator and tell them about your program.  If you are not involved with health information literacy, but would like to be – also, contact your state coordinator. (bbj)

Coming soon to public television: A new 4-hour series,” Designing Healthy Communities”, in which host/narrator Richard Jackson, MD, MPH, looks at the impact our built environment has on key public health indices – obesity, diabetes, heart disease, asthma, cancer and depression.

For more information: http://designinghealthycommunities.org/

[Wellness and Prevention Health Reform Digest, Jan. 19, 2012]

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3^rd Annual Kentucky

Health Literacy Summit

Building Your Health Literacy Toolkit

March 22-23, 2012

Marriott Griffin Gate Hotel

Lexington, Kentucky

Open to all those interested inimproving their health literacy and

patient communications skills.

KEYNOTE SPEAKERS INCLUDE:

- Cindy Brach, AHRQ

- Audrey Riffenburgh, Plain Language Works

- Al Cross, Institute for Rural Journalism

- Bruce Rector, Monday Morning MessagesInteractive workshops will provide you with a health literacy toolkit of skills and resources:

- Health Literacy 101

- Usability Testing

- TeachBack

- Social Media

- Electronic Health Records

Contributed papers and posters will highlight local/regional health literacy activities.

For more information or to register, visit http://www.cecentral.com/live/3748

If you require special arrangements to attend, please contact Jane Bryant.

Questions? Contact Jane Bryant at (859) 323 – 5715 or jbryant@uky.edu

Jane Bryant; Health Literacy Librarian; University of Kentucky Medical Center Library; 859-323-5715; jbryant@uky.edu

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Image via Wikipedia

Due to a growing number of reports about improper use of insulin pens, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has issued a reminder that the devices must never be used on more than one person.

Using insulin pens on more than one person puts people at risk for infection with blood-borne pathogens such as hepatitis viruses and HIV, which causes AIDS, the agency warns. Infection can occur even if an insulin pen’s needle is changed. http://bit.ly/ypsrBY [HealthDay]

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The ¡VIVA! Peer Tutors of the South Texas Independent School District are conducting a nationwide health literacy challenge. Students enrolled in U.S. schools in grades 6-12 can submit a video promoting the web site MedlinePlus.gov. Video submission will open February 1, 2012 and will close March 23, 2012. Winners will be announced on the ¡VIVA! web site and Facebook page on April 16, 2012, and winning videos will be posted on the ¡VIVA! web site.

For complete details about the video contest please visit the ¡VIVA! web site at: http://bla.stisd.net/viva.html [NN/LM

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Please check the Health Affairs’ web site for a new paper on health literacy and health policy by HHS Assistant Secretary for Health Howard Koh and other HHS colleagues. http://content.healthaffairs.org/content/early/2012/01/18/hlthaff.2011.1169 (You should be able to access this article for the next 2 weeks even without a Health Affairs’ subscription. The article will appear in their print journal in early February.)

Also this week, the Institute of Medicine Health Literacy Roundtable released a discussion paper on the Attributes of a Health Literate Organization. This brief paper is based on the Roundtable’s November 2011 workshop on the same topic. http://www.iom.edu/Activities/PublicHealth/HealthLiteracy.aspx

Both papers represent a major step forward for health literacy issues as a part of mainstream health policymaking.

Cynthia Baur; U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

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In the study, doctors examined certain measures of care — such as whether a patient was prescribed aspirin or ACE inhibitors (heart drugs) at the time of discharge — on 107,403 Asian-American and white heart attack patients. The study encompassed five years, from 2003 to 2008.

Asian-Americans were less likely to be given aspirin or counseling on how to quit smoking after they left the hospital. They were also more likely than whites to receive lipid-lowering therapy. http://1.usa.gov/A6Uxpx             [MedlinePlus]

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