EHC Core Consulting Services (Internal)

The Effective Health Communication (EHC) Core provides consultation on multiple aspects of research related to health literacy, numeracy, cross-cultural communication, and mobile device or Internet-based communication.

Consultation can be arranged at any stage in the research process, including identification of appropriate measures and resources, feedback on study-related materials, recruitment of patients, informed consent, accurate data collection, data analysis and interpretation, and dissemination of findings, all with an eye toward making the research accessible to patients across a range of health literacy skills and cultures.

EHC Core services include:

  • Consultation regarding the development of consent and e-consent sensitive to patient literacy/numeracy and other factors.
  • Consultation regarding accurate collection of data from patients with low literacy skills.
  • Identification of existing scales and resources related to the assessment of health literacy, numeracy, patient education, and other communication domains.
  • Assist with content development, and evaluation of literacy, numeracy, and health communication related measures.
  • Consultation on efficacious and sustainable communication modalities (e.g., phone, text, web, in-person) based on population(s), goals, and resources.
  • Strategies for recruitment of patients including those with lower literacy skills or limited English proficiency.
  • Consultation on content development, design and evaluation of health communication interventions for patients or providers, including print, audiovisual, web-based, or mobile phone-based tools.

To request EHC Core services, please email erin.m.bergner@vumc.org.