[DNVF Memorandum Health Literacy (Part 2) - Operationalisation and Measuring of Health Literacy from a Health Services Research Perspective]. / DNVF Memorandum Gesundheitskompetenz (Teil II) ­ Operationalisierung und Messung von Gesundheitskompetenz aus Sicht der Versorgungsforschung.

The "DNVF Memorandum Health Literacy (Part 2): Operationalization and Measurement of Health Literacy from the Perspective of Health Services Research" of the German Network for Health Services Research represents the continuation of the memorandum "DNVF Memorandum Health Literacy (Part 1): Background, Subject and Issues in Health Services Research". In addition to the general requirements for the measurement of health literacy, this memorandum also deals with the specific requirements, such as the differentiation of health literacy from related constructs, the differences between performance-based and self-assessment methods, the differences between generic and specific instruments, the use of screening instruments, and the measurement of health literacy in special populations. Furthermore, special considerations about the measurement of digital health literacy, potentials of qualitative and participatory research approaches as well as research ethics in the measurement of health literacy will be elaborated on. A special emphasis is placed on practical relevance for health services researchers. Finally, the authors will give an outlook on challenges and research desiderata in connection with the measurement of health literacy in the context of health services research.

Prenatal Methamphetamine Exposure: Effects on Child Development­A Systematic Review.

BACKGROUND: In Germany, the 12-month prevalence of methamphetamine use among persons aged 15 to 34 is 1.9%. An increasing number of newborns are being born after a prenatal methamphetamine exposure (PME). In 2014, in the German state of Saxony, approximately four out of 1000 newborns were affected. METHODS: This systematic review (Prospero registration number CRD42017060536) includes publications that were published between January 1990 and November 2019. The purpose was to determine the effects of PME on the peri- and neonatal condition of the affected children and on their further long-term development. Observational studies with a control group were included in the review and examined for their methodological quality. RESULTS: 31 publications, which dealt with two prospective and six retrospective cohort studies, were included in the review. The studies involved a total of 4446 mother-child pairs with PME, compared with 43 778 pairs without PME. A metaanalysis revealed that PME was associated with, among other findings, lower birth weight (SMD = -0.348; 95% confidence interval [-0.777; 0.081]), shorter body length (SMD= -0.198 [-0.348; -0.047]), and smaller head circumference (SMD= -0.479 [-1.047; 0.089]). Some differences between the groups with and without PME persist into the toddler years. Moreover, children with PME much more commonly display psychological and neurocognitive abnormalities, which are more severe in children growing up in problematic surroundings (discord, violence, poverty, low educational level of the parent or caregiver). A limitation of this review is that not all studies employed an objective or quantitative measure of methamphet - amine use. CONCLUSION: The documented effects of PME on child development necessitate early treatment of the affected expectant mothers, children, and families. Emphasis should be placed on structured and interdisciplinary preventive measures for methamphetamine use.

[DNVF Memorandum Health Literacy (Part 1) - Background, Relevance, Research Topics and Questions in Health Services Research]. / DNVF Memorandum Gesundheitskompetenz (Teil 1) ­ Hintergrund, Relevanz, Gegenstand und Fragestellungen in der Versorgungsforschung.

More than half of the German population has difficulties in dealing with health information. It is an important task of health services research to examine how healthcare professionals and health care organizations can meet this challenge. The DNVF Memorandum Health Literacy (Part 1) defines the terms of individual and organizational health literacy, presents the national and international state of research and ethical aspects of health literacy research in health care settings. The relevance of health literacy research is worked out in different phases of life, for different target groups and in different healthcare contexts. Central research topics and future research desiderata are derived.

[DNVF Memorandum Health Literacy (Part 1) - Background, Relevance, Research Topics and Questions in Health Services Research: Short Version]. / DNVF Memorandum Gesundheitskompetenz (Teil 1) ­ Hintergrund, Relevanz, Gegenstand und Fragestellungen in der Versorgungsforschung: Kurzfassung.

More than half of the German population has difficulties in dealing with health information. It is an important task of health services research to examine how healthcare professionals and health care organizations can meet this challenge. This short version of the DNVF Memorandum Health Literacy (Part 1) defines the terms of individual and organizational health literacy, presents the national and international state of research and ethical aspects of health literacy research in health care settings. Central research topics and future research desiderata are derived.

The psychological effects of meditation: a meta-analysis.

In this meta-analysis, we give a comprehensive overview of the effects of meditation on psychological variables that can be extracted from empirical studies, concentrating on the effects of meditation on nonclinical groups of adult meditators. Mostly because of methodological problems, almost ¾ of an initially identified 595 studies had to be excluded. Most studies appear to have been conducted without sufficient theoretical background. To put the results into perspective, we briefly summarize the major theoretical approaches from both East and West. The 163 studies that allowed the calculation of effect sizes exhibited medium average effects (r = .28 for all studies and r = .27 for the n = 125 studies from reviewed journals), which cannot be explained by mere relaxation or cognitive restructuring effects. In general, results were strongest (medium to large) for changes in emotionality and relationship issues, less strong (about medium) for measures of attention, and weakest (small to medium) for more cognitive measures. However, specific findings varied across different approaches to meditation (transcendental meditation, mindfulness meditation, and other meditation techniques). Surprisingly, meditation experience only partially covaried with long-term impact on the variables examined. In general, the dependent variables used cover only some of the content areas about which predictions can be made from already existing theories about meditation; still, such predictions lack precision at present. We conclude that to arrive at a comprehensive understanding of why and how meditation works, emphasis should be placed on the development of more precise theories and measurement devices.