Health Literacy among Older Adults during COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Study in an Urban Community in Thailand.

BACKGROUND: This study assessed health literacy (HL) and its associated factors among older adults during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. METHODS: This cross-sectional study included older adults in urban communities in Thailand. We randomly selected a total of 421 older adults and performed multiple logistic regression analyses. RESULTS: The average age of the respondents was 70.0±7.1 years. Most respondents were female, married, had a low education level (primary school or lower), were unemployed, and had sufficient income. We observed nonproficient and proficient HL levels in 56.1% and 43.9% of respondents, respectively. The factors influencing HL included attending healthcare services at a tertiary hospital, good accessibility to COVID-19 prevention materials and health information, and provision of a high level of social support from neighbors and health personnel. CONCLUSION: The results of our study provide important information on the outcome of accessibility and social support among older adults in an urban community during the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, access to health services, prevention equipment, and information was important for people at risk of HL and helped promote good behaviors.

Factors Associated with Good COVID-19 Preventive Behaviors Among Older Adults in Urban Communities in Thailand.

INTRODUCTION/OBJECTIVES: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has affected mobility and mortality entire age, especially older adults. The COVID-19 preventive behaviors among older adults during the pandemic should be determined. To our knowledge, little is known about the preventive behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic among older adults living in urban areas in Thailand and the factors predicted to their behavior. Hence, the present study aimed to assess COVID-19 preventive behaviors among older adults and to identify the associated factors. METHODS: This cross-sectional study included 421 participants aged ≥60 years. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, binary and multiple logistic regression analysis. RESULTS: We found that 321 (72.6%) of the participants had good COVID-19 preventive behaviors. Moreover, 83.4% of the participants had good family support and 58.2% had easy access to health information. Only sufficient income (odds ratio [OR]: 1.76, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.04-2.97), easy access to health services (OR: 3.66, 95% CI: 1.42-9.45) and protective material (OR: 1.98, 95% CI: 1.14-3.45), and good family support (OR: 2.05, 95% CI: 1.10-3.82) were associated with good COVID-19 preventive behaviors. In contrast, health literacy, access to health information, and neighbor and health personnel support were not associated with COVID-19 preventive behaviors. CONCLUSION: Based on the present results, interdisciplinary healthcare teams should consider social support, and access to healthcare when developing interventions for encouraging and promoting health outcomes in order to improve physical and psychological COVID-19 preventive behaviors, particularly among elderly people living in urban communities during the COVID-19 pandemic.