Organizational Health Literacy of German Public Health Departments (OHL-PH): Development of a Conceptual Model Employing Expert Interviews

Mehlis A, Locher V, Hornberg C. Organisationale Gesundheitskompetenz deutscher Gesundheitsämter (OGK-GA): Entwicklung eines theoretischen Modells mit Hilfe von ExpertInneninterviews. Das Gesundheitswesen. 2021.OBJECTIVE: In addition to the users' individual health literacy (HL), the organizational health literacy (OHL) of health care organizations plays an important role as well in assuring the health of the poipulation. In Germany, public health departments are responsible for public health at population level. They should help their users to access, understand and navigate and use information and services in their health-related decisions. This study addresses the question of the best conceptual model of OHL of the German public health departments for the first time.; METHODS: In this explorative study, eleven guideline-oriented interviews with experts from public health departments were conducted in three German federal states. Subsequently, the transcripts underwent qualitative content analysis.; RESULTS: A new conceptual model consisting of twelve attributes was identified for OHL of public health departments in Germany. These twelve characteristics can be assigned to the aspects "leadership and organizational culture", "employees" and "development and implementation of information and services".; CONCLUSIONS: This model for the OHL-PH lays the foundation for future research in this area. It enables the development of a self-assessment tool and therefore the measurement of the level of OHL as well as the identification of barriers. Increasing the OHL of German public health departments by overcoming these obstacles can make a significant contribution to improving public health. Thieme. All rights reserved