Health Education Skills
- Define health literacy and explain why it matters for making good health choices.
- Describe the three ways CHWs teach health: simpler words, teach-back, and Ask Me 3.
- List California's legal requirements for hospitals and health plans to offer language support.
- Identify best practices for linguistically accessible healthcare for diverse communities.
- Recall strategies to improve health literacy among patients.
Teaching is core CHW work
One of the main responsibilities of CHWs is teaching people about taking care of their health. Sometimes it's hard to understand what's going on when you're sick — and going to the doctor can be confusing.
CHWs help bridge the gap between what providers say and what patients actually understand. This lesson explores strategies for teaching patients about health, using good communication, and making sure everyone understands — no matter what language they speak or culture they're from.
What health literacy means
The World Health Organization (WHO) says health education is about giving people chances to learn how to be healthy. It's not just giving information — it's helping people feel motivated and confident to take care of their own health.
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The role of CHWs in health education
CHWs help patients stay healthy by guiding them toward good habits, helping them understand their medical conditions, and making sure they can communicate effectively with their healthcare team. CHWs provide resources, pass on advice from medical professionals, and coach patients on effective communication with providers.
Three core methods
Three approaches CHWs use to develop health education competencies:
- Simplifying language
- The teach-back method
- Ask Me 3™
The three methods
Simplify your language — Instead of… / Use…
- Benign
- Not cancer
- Lesion
- Wound or sore
- Oral
- By mouth
- Avoid
- Stay away from
- Hazardous
- Not safe
- Adequate
- Enough
- An exact amount
- "Drink 6 glasses of water each day"
- Routinely
- Exact times: every day, every other day, once a week
- Intake
- What you eat or drink
- Risk
- Chances
How did the patient's understanding of his condition change after using the Ask Me 3 questions?
What's one situation in your life — your own healthcare, or someone you care for — where these three questions could help?
A CHW finishes explaining a medication schedule and wants to confirm the patient understood. Using the teach-back method, what should the CHW do?
Match each Ask Me 3™ question to the patient need it helps address.
Culturally and linguistically appropriate care
CHWs and providers must effectively help people from all different cultures and languages. This includes practicing cultural competence and cultural humility. Two core ideas to keep in mind:
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When it comes to health education, cultural competence means making an effort to learn how different cultures might affect healthcare decisions. This helps you communicate in ways that fit the patient's culture and what they want.
Linguistically appropriate care — 3 best practices
To enhance the effectiveness of healthcare services for community members from diverse linguistic backgrounds, CHWs play a crucial role in ensuring that care is linguistically accessible and inclusive. By doing so, CHWs can significantly elevate patient understanding, trust, and engagement, leading to more effective healthcare outcomes.
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What California requires
In California, hospitals and health plans are legally required to help patients who don't speak English well. They must:
- Have a translator available — in person or over the phone.
- Provide important written materials in the main languages their members speak, including: a handbook explaining benefits; notices about changes to or end of coverage; and information on how to file complaints or request changes.
Other tips of the trade
Countless ways exist for CHWs to support health literacy. Some strategies:
- Use a health literacy questionnaire to understand the patient's perception of their literacy and experiences.
- Follow up after appointments — ask if they need help understanding what their doctor said.
- Ask how they prefer to receive information (written, spoken, visual diagrams, video demos) and provide it that way.
- Encourage patients to take notes or check off key information during discussions.
- Advise patients to write down concerns and list medications before appointments, bring a trusted companion, and ask pharmacists when something is unclear.
Resources to know
- TRAIN Learning Network — A national network providing no-cost training for public health workers. Topics: Health Literacy and Public Health Professionals, Writing for the Public, Speaking with the Public, Creating Easier-to-Understand Lists/Charts/Graphs, Fundamentals of Communicating Health Risks, Using Numbers and Explaining Risk, and Effective Communication for Healthcare Teams. (train.org)
- National Center for Cultural Competence (NCCC) — Georgetown University. Helps healthcare and mental healthcare programs serve culturally and linguistically diverse populations so everyone gets quality care and equal chances at health. (nccc.georgetown.edu)
- CDC Spanish-language site — The CDC website is available in Spanish. (cdc.gov/spanish)
Under California law, what are hospitals and health plans required to provide for patients with limited English? Select all that apply.
Which statement best captures what health literacy actually measures?
🌟 Lesson takeaways
Health literacy isn't about how smart someone is — it's about whether the healthcare system communicates in a way they can use. CHWs help people gain the skills, knowledge, and confidence to take control of their health using three core methods: simplifying language, teach-back, and Ask Me 3™. Add cultural competence and humility — plus patients' legal right to professional translators and materials in their language — and you have the toolkit. Listen carefully, use interpreters when needed, and follow up after appointments.
At the end of this module, you'll join a live discussion with your cohort and an instructor. We'll see you there.