October is Health Literacy Month. This is the 11^th year that advocates everywhere are raising awareness about health literacy and ways to improve understanding. This year, we decided to focus on stories – stories about why health literacy matters to healthcare providers, policy makers, researchers, educators, students, patients, families, and all others who care about health.

In this special edition podcast, you will hear six people share their stories about why health literacy matters. I recorded this podcast in May when I was giving a workshop at the Institute for Healthcare Advancement’s (or IHA) 8^th Annual Health Literacy Conference.

This is the second of two Health Literacy Month podcasts. In this one, you will hear from:

• Arthur Culbert, Health Literacy Missouri Foundation
• Stacy Bailey, Northwestern University
• Mary Ann Abrams MD, Iowa Health System
• Roberta Dickman, Advocate Healthcare Lutheran General
• Gloria Mayer, Institute for Healthcare Advancement (IHA)

More ways to learn:

• Health Literacy Month website. Thanks to a team of remarkable volunteers and amazing authors, each day in October there are one or more health literacy stories posted at www.healthliteracymonth.org.
• Health Literacy Out Loud. Hear interviews with those in-the-know about health literacy by going to www.healthliteracymonth.org
• Health Literacy Consulting. Find out more about Helen Osborne’s work and background by going to www.healthliteracy.com
• Institute for Healthcare Advancement. Find out about this organization and its upcoming health literacy conference by going to www.iha4health.org

On a recent trip to Indermark (a village in Northern South Africa), I was privileged to talk with a group of community healthcare workers. They shared ways of teaching about health and nutrition. Two workers sang health songs they wrote. In this podcast you will hear them sing these songs in English, Zulu, and the native language Sepedi.

Here are photos of them listening to this recording:

There are many ways to raise awareness about health literacy. I’m delighted to share two Health Literacy Month songs composed and performed by Mache Seibel, MD.

Dr. Seibel is a practicing physician and professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Massachusetts Medical School in Worcester, MA. He also is a composer and performer who uses music and song to teach about health. You can learn more about Dr. Seibel’s wonderful work by going to his HealthRock website at www.healthrock.com.

In this HLOL podcast, you will hear two health literacy songs along with Dr. Seibel talking about why he composed them. Dr. Seibel has kindly offered a free download in honor of Health Literacy Month. To do so, go to www.healthrock.com and then click “podcasts.”

October is Health Literacy Month. This is the 11^th year that advocates everywhere are raising awareness about health literacy and ways to improve understanding. This year, we decided to focus on stories – stories about why health literacy matters to healthcare providers, policy makers, researchers, educators, students, patients, families, and all others who care about health.

In this special edition podcast, you will hear five people share their stories about why health literacy matters. I recorded these in May 2009 when I was giving a workshop at the Institute for Healthcare Advancement’s (or IHA) 8^th Annual Health Literacy Conference.

This is the first of two Health Literacy Month podcasts. In this one, you will hear from:

• Michael Villaire, Institute for Healthcare Advancement (IHA)
• Cindy Brach, AHRQ (Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality)
• Michael Wolf PhD, Northwestern University
• Beccah Rothschild, Health Research to Action at UC Berkeley
• Jutta Ulrich, Health Guide America

More ways to learn:

• Health Literacy Month website. Thanks to a team of remarkable volunteers and amazing authors, each day in October there are one or more health literacy stories posted at www.healthliteracymonth.org.
• Health Literacy Out Loud. Hear interviews with those in-the-know about health literacy by going to www.healthliteracymonth.org
• Health Literacy Consulting. Find out more about Helen Osborne’s work and background by going to www.healthliteracy.com
• Institute for Healthcare Advancement. Find out about this organization and its upcoming health literacy conference by going to www.iha4health.org