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Nature of course request C01786 :

New course

Undergraduate

First term offered : Fall 2011
Course Prefix&Number	Descriptive Title	Credits/Hours
Comm 361	Health Literacy	3 -

Abbreviation for Class Schedule(20 spaces) Health Literacy

Catalog Description: This course investigates health literacy from the perspective of individuals, organizations, public policy, health care organizations, and the broader community. It focuses on the health context because of potential impact of lower health literacy on health outcomes, health care costs, mortality, and effective care. However, the course is relevant to any organization that must communicate complex information to the public. To help future communication professionals, the course also covers analyzing written materials and revising them using `plain language¿ guidelines.

Course Goal and Objectives: 1. To understand how `health literacy¿ has come to be defined and measured and to consider the socio-demographic characteristics associated with populations at risk for lower health literacy. 2. To learn the social, organizational and personal impact of lower literacy skills, particularly in a complex environment such as health care organizations and to be able to critically consider the impact in other environments. 3. To understand the challenge that the intersection of lower health literacy and complex information create for communication professionals. 4. To learn to evaluate documents (qualitatively and quantitatively) and to compose/design written materials using `plain language¿ to increase the readability for a variety of audiences.

Justification for adding the course (e.g. alignment with other institutions, program revision, etc.): This course is part of a program revision to include health communication courses in the department. (Health Communication is a key specialization in communication programs across the country and is represented in numerous scholarly journals.) The course has been taught 3 times (once per year over the last 3 academic years) as a Comm 407 Seminar class; student interest and enrollment has been consistently high.

Faculty and facilities needed: Course is taught using a current Communication Studies faculty member with health communication expertise (hired in 2008). Smart Room technology optimizes the course content; however, no other facilities are needed.

Brief Course outline: See the attached syllabus.

Approval Queue C01786

Attached Files:

Health Literacy Syllabus.doc

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