Series: Communication in the dental practice. Low levels of literacy and limited health literacy
Approximately 36% of the Dutch population has insufficient or limited health literacy. This disproportionately concerns patients with low socioeconomic status (SES), the elderly and migrants, but also highly-educated patients. Dentists are often unaware of this. A patient with limited health literacy might have trouble with a dentist’s explanation or with reading written information. A dentist may not immediately notice this, but can be aware of signals indicating it. Such signals can vary from not completely filling out a questionnaire to wrongly interpreting instructions or systematically not showing up to appointments. The dentist needs to take this into account in his use of language and adapt any informational matter to make it understandable for everyone. Co-workers such as receptionists also need to be informed about signs indicating limited health literacy and how best to communicate with these patients