A systematic review of the effectiveness of community-based interventions aimed at improving health literacy of parents/carers of children

Abstract

Aim:

The aim of this systematic review was to examine the effectiveness of community-based health literacy interventions in improving the health literacy of parents.

Methods:

A systematic review of six databases – MEDLINE, PsycINFO, CINAHL, Cochrane Library, Embase, and Education Source – was conducted to identify relevant articles. Risk of bias was assessed using version two of the Cochrane risk of bias tool for randomised controlled trials or the Cochrane collaboration risk of bias in non-randomised studies of interventions. The study findings were grouped and synthesised following the synthesis without meta-analysis framework.

Results:

Eleven community-based health literacy interventions for parents were identified. Study design included randomised controlled trials ( n = 4), non-randomised studies with comparison group ( n = 4), and non-randomised studies without a comparison group ( n = 3). Interventions were delivered digitally, in person or a combination of the two. The risk of bias was high in over half the studies ( n = 7). The main findings of the studies showed some potential for both in person and digital interventions to increase parental health literacy. Studies were heterogeneous preventing a meta-analysis.

Conclusion:

Community-based, health literacy interventions have been identified as potential methods for enhancing parental health literacy. Due to the small number of included studies and their potential for bias, these results must be interpreted with caution. This study emphasises the need for additional theory and evidence-based research on the long-term effects of community interventions.