Organizational health literacy of schools in Germany
Results of a cross-sectional study
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 22944787 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Sandra Kirchhoff (0000-0002-2820-0173, Technical University of Munich), Cara Krudewig (0009-0000-8333-5292, Technical University of Munich), Orkan Okan (0000-0003-1714-4783, Technical University of Munich) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Volume | 40 |
| Issue | 4 |
| Publication date | 2025-07-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Health Promotion International (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0957-4824 • E-ISSN: 1460-2245 |
| Publisher | Oxford University Press (OUP) (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1093/heapro/daaf112 |
| PMID | 40754692 |
| OpenAlex | W4412880914 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 3 |
| References cited | 49 |
A social gradient in health literacy is prevalent in children and adolescents, with those from lower socioeconomic backgrounds often having lower levels. Interventions aiming at an entire setting, such as the organizational health literacy approach, seem promising to tackle these inequities. Schools represent unique environments to implement such interventions. The HeLit-Schools project aimed at developing an organizational health literacy framework for schools. The framework contains eight quality standards, each underpinned by six indicators, and was translated into a self-assessment tool (OHLS-Q). In this cross-sectional study, the German version of the OHLS-Q was used to assess the implementation status of organizational health literacy in schools in Germany for the first time. School management members completed the questionnaire via an online survey, including sociodemographic, personal, and school information. Descriptive statistics were reported. The n = 598 participants from five federal states were Ø 52.3 years old and mainly female (73.6%). 49.1% worked in primary, 37% in secondary, and 13.9% in special education schools. Overall, respondents reported that 65.1% of the standards and indicators of the framework were (rather) highly implemented. A great variance can be found between the individual standards and indicators. Schools already participating in school health promotion programs or networks showed a higher percentage of implementation across all standards. A lack of resources (financial, time, and personnel) is reported. The results reveal important insights into barriers and facilitators for the implementation of organizational health literacy in schools. Future studies should focus on interventions that overcome identified barriers, targeting specific standards and indicators.
Cross-sectional study · Descriptive statistics · Environmental health · Geography · German · Health care · Health literacy · Health promotion · Literacy · Medical education · Pedagogy · Political science · Population · Promotion (chess) · Psychological intervention · Public health · Socioeconomic status · Health Literacy and Information Accessibility · Health, psychology, and well-being · Medicine · Nursing · Psychology · School Health and Nursing Education
Schools, health literacy and public health
Health literacy in childhood and youth
The World Health Organization’s Health Promoting Schools framework
Adolescent health literacy and health behaviors
Health Education as Social Policy
Health literacy as a learning outcome in schools
The Whole School, Whole Community, Whole Child Model
Health literacy and public health
Fidelity, adaptation and integration of whole-school health promotion within Dutch schools
Addressing Health Literacy in Schools in Germany
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The Importance of School Leaders’ Attitudes and Health Literacy to the Implementation of a Health-Promoting Schools Approach
Subjective Health Literacy among School-Aged Children
The Role of School Leaders’ Health Literacy for the Implementation of Health Promoting Schools
Organizational Health Literacy in Schools
Exploring Associated Factors of Subjective Health Literacy in School-Aged Children
A Comparative Study on Adolescents’ Health Literacy in Europe
Potentials of School Nursing for Strengthening the Health Literacy of Children, Parents and Teachers
Child and Youth Health Literacy
Parental health literacy and health knowledge, behaviours and outcomes in children
Health literacy and the determinants of obesity
Coefficient alpha and the internal structure of tests
| Unique citing works | 3 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 3 |
| Citation span | 2026 - 2026 (1) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 3 |