Perceived Barriers to Care and Attitudes Towards Shared Decision-making Among Low Socioeconomic Status Parents: Role of Health Literacy

Abstract Objective Although low parent health literacy (HL) has been linked to poor child health outcomes, it is not known whether differences in perceptions related to access to care and provider–parent partnership in care are potential contributing factors. We sought to assess whether parent HL is associated with differences in perceived barriers to care and attitudes regarding participatory decision-making with the provider. Methods This was a cross-sectional analysis of data collected from parents presenting with their child to an urban public hospital pediatric clinic in New York City. Dependent variables were caregiver-reported barriers to care (ability to reach provider at night/on weekends, difficult travel to clinic) and attitudes towards participatory decision-making (feeling like a partner, relying on doctor's knowledge, leaving decisions up to the doctor, being given choices/asked opinion). The primary independent variable was caregiver HL (Short Test of Functional Health Literacy in Adults [S-TOHFLA]). Results A total of 823 parents were assessed; 1 in 4 (27.0%) categorized as having low HL. Parents with low HL were more likely to report barriers to care than those with adequate HL: trouble reaching provider nights/weekends, 64.9% vs. 49.6%, (p Conclusions Addressing issues of parent HL may be helpful in ameliorating barriers to care and promoting provider-parent partnership in care.