Child Dehydration Management: A Health Literacy-Focused Resource Analysis

ABSTRACT

Background

As children are at high dehydration risk, caregivers must have access to understandable and actionable educational resources.

Purpose

This study assessed usability, accessibility, complexity and readability of diverse pediatric dehydration educational materials.

Methods

Over-the-counter (OTC) electrolyte replacement solution labeling, internet-based OTC electrolyte replacement solution content features and YouTube™ dehydration management videos were reviewed and evaluated for adherence to health literacy guidelines.

Results

Reading demands (≈8^th-9^th grade) and text point sizes of OTC usage and instruction labels did not meet health literacy formatting guidelines. Just one electrolyte replacement solution included both English- and Spanish-language information labeling. All (n = 5) brand name electrolyte replacement solutions provided supplemental internet-based product-related resources. Unique YouTube™ dehydration management videos (n = 9), uploaded between February 16, 2015 and June 30, 2020, had view ranges from 3413 to 202 945.

Discussion

The scope of pediatric childhood dehydration educational materials should be expanded upon to include multilingual options adhering to evidence-based health literacy formatting guidelines.

Translation to Health Education Practice

There is need for health educators to be cognizant of communication components – literacy levels, language, culture – when designing health education materials and familiarize themselves with validated evidence-based tools to assess suitability of communication aids and materials.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).