2004 Health Communication Conference

Moving Forward to Improve Health Literacy

In support of the focus on patient health literacy, the American College of Physicians Foundation held its Third Annual National Health Co 2004 Conference photo

mmunication Conference, "Moving Forward to Improve Health Literacy," October 27th and 28th, 2004. As in years past, the conference was co-sponsored by the Institute of Medicine.

Close to 80 stakeholders from within the field of health literacy convened to build on the IOM report, "Health Literacy: A Prescription to End Confusion," released in April 2004 by the Institute of Medicine.

Leaders from medicine, insurance, healthcare policy, pharmaceutical companies, government, large employers, and consumer advocacy groups worked together in breakout groups to produce a set of action plans toward establishing a national agenda to confront low health literacy. Included in this group were representatives from the Surgeon General's Office, the Institute of Medicine, AARP, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Service, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, American Lung Association, Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, CIGNA, Pfizer, Astra Zeneca, The New York Times, CBS News, the American Cancer Society, Markle Foundation, National Institutes of Health, Council of Medical Specialty Societies, and many others.

Conference Executive Summary