Table 2 Percentage of HLS-EU-Q16 items for fairly difficult or very difficult (n = 1255) [7, 27]
On a scale from very easy to very difficult, how easy would you say it is to: … | fairly difficult or very difficult n (%) | ||
|---|---|---|---|
No | Dimension | Subscale: Health care | |
Q1 | Access | … find information on treatments of illnesses that concern you? | 253 (20.2) |
Q2 | … find out where to get professional help when you are ill? | 230 (18.3) | |
Q3 | Understand | … understand what your doctor says to you? | 194 (15.5) |
Q4 | … understand your doctor’s or pharmacist’s instruction on how to take prescribed medicine? | 45 (3.6) | |
Q5 | Appraise | … judge when you may need to get a second opinion from another doctor? | 429 (34.2) |
Q6 | Apply | … use information the doctor gives you to make decisions about your illness? | 350 (27.9) |
Q7 | … follow instructions from your doctor or pharmacist? | 85 (6.8) | |
Subscale: Disease prevention | |||
Q8 | Access | … find information on how to manage mental health problems like stress or depression? | 462 (36.8) |
Q9 | Understand | … understand health warnings about behavior such as smoking, low physical activity and drinking too much? | 52 (4.1) |
Q10 | … understand why you need health screenings? | 78 (6.2) | |
Q11 | Appraise | … judge if the information on health risks in the media is reliable? | 698 (55.6) |
Q12 | Apply | … decide how you can protect yourself from illness based on information in the media? | 570 (45.4) |
Subscale: Health promotion | |||
Q13 | Access | … find out about activities that are good for your mental well-being? | 301 (24.0) |
Q14 | Understand | … understand advice on health from family members or friends? | 175 (13.9) |
Q15 | … understand information in the media on how to get healthier? | 245 (19.5) | |
Q16 | Appraise | … judge which everyday behavior is related to your health? | 166 (13.2) |