Literacy Spanning the U.S.- Tucson AZ, Lompoc CA, Worcester MA, Utah

Literacy Spanning the U.S.

ARIZONA

Too many patients have poor health literacy

Inside Tucson Business: 10.11.2013 by Kay Miller Temple

PHOENIX — Paulette Compton’s husband had an MBA and was trained by the military to fly planes, helicopters and blimps. But faced with doctor’s recommendation to get a chest X-ray to determine the cause of a persistent cough, he refused.

She learned that only after Cecil Compton died at age 71 from lung cancer, five months after it was finally diagnosed.

Now Compton is left to wonder if her husband had understood that acting on the advice to get a chest X-ray could have led to earlier detection of cancer.

“There is no doubt my husband was a smart man, a very smart man,” Compton said, “but I don’t think he understood why a chest X-ray might have been important.”

According to experts, Cecil Compton fit the profile of most people who don’t understand health information. They are literate on many other topics but still find it difficult to understand and act in order to make the best choices.

Health literacy, or being able to read, understand and act on medical information, is a struggle for nine in 10 people, according to the U.S. Preventative Task Force, an independent group of health care experts.

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Evonda Copeland, library services supervisor for Scottsdale Healthcare, said that’s where a medical librarian can step in by taking the time to give personal assistance and one-on-one attention to make sure patients get answers to their health care questions.  READ MORE !

CALIFORNIA

Literacy — A simple solution for 24 years

Lompoc Record: 10.25.2013 by Christina Chill, Library Literacy Coordinator

From my experience as literacy coordinator at Lompoc Public Library since 1981, I firmly believe “literacy” is essential to success in today’s information-driven society.

It is a basic need that helps people emerge out of poverty and into the mainstream of our society. Yet, despite our nation’s best efforts, a recent study shows that illiteracy rates have made little or no progress in 30 years and still remains to be a silent epidemic, one that is not talked about and often swept under the rug.

I am very passionate about this issue — one, because I have a son who nearly fell through the cracks of our educational system, and two, because I love reading and learning and could not for one minute imagine my own life without the ability to read, write and express myself.

After working in literacy for more than two decades, I have come to realize that this segment of our population needs a voice, someone to advocate for them and make our community aware of the importance and continued need for free and easy access to lifelong learning opportunities. To this day, I still find it astonishing and somewhat appalling, that 18 percent of English-speaking adults in our county — our neighbors — lack basic reading and writing skills. This is a community problem.

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We are also forming a Literacy Committee to help the Library formulate a plan for continuance of literacy service into the future.

Anyone interested in this issue is invited to attend the first meeting which will begin at 6 p.m. Monday in the Grossman Gallery at the Lompoc Public Library, 501 E. North Ave.  READ MORE !

MASSACHUSETTS

Worcester Public Library and Literacy Volunteers of Greater Worcester celebrate Constitution Day

In City Times Worcester: 10.18.2013 by Laurie D’Amico

“I am an American!” Those are the words that inspire American citizenship seekers to study US history for countless hours and to practice using difficult words in English to pass the naturalization test.

On September 17 at the Worcester Public Library immigrants and refugees interested in finding out more about citizenship were able to meet with the field officers from the US Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). Lou Chaves and Roy Davis of USCIS spent the afternoon and evening answering specific questions about how to successfully apply and attain US citizenship. Mr. Davis explained how important it is to be sure who you go to for help. Sometimes people pretend to be “immigration experts” to deceive you and take your money. Of course this is against the law, but it happens everyday.

The Literacy Volunteers of Greater office located in room 332 at the Worcester Public Library offers free ESL and Citizenship classes throughout the year. The goals are to explain qualifications for citizenship, offer lessons in US History, prepare for the Naturalization test and answer basic questions on how to complete necessary forms. The library offers the most recent available citizenship materials such as cds, dvds, books, flashcards and playaways that can be easily borrowed with the use of a library card.

Mr. Roy Davis explained that citizenship seekers can apply for a USCIS infopass which is a free Internet-based scheduling system available online that allows you to make appointments at your local USCIS office to meet with an immigration officer. Sometimes websites that look professional can also lead you to a scam. Citizenship teacher Cricket Paulsen, has the information to access the info pass and helps make the naturalization process safe, informative and successful.

UTAH

Literacy indicator of healthy society

Daily Utah Chronicle: 10.23.2013 by Nafisa Masud

In this day and age, it is rare for a fellow passenger on public transportation to be reading a novel for pleasure, or for a child to shun a computer in favor of a well-worn book. And while my heart breaks as I write it, the advances of our modern world are making traditional book reading uncommon.

But fear not, fellow readers — books still have a place in our world, albeit in a different form. The ways we function, travel and communicate have changed and evolved over time, but literacy and the written word retain great value in today’s society.

Author Neil Gaiman recently gave a lecture at the annual Reading Agency on the future of books and their importance, emphasizing the empathy and inventiveness reading grants us. Gaiman argues that books provide us with an enriched perspective of the world around us and grant us the ingenuity to find solutions to the problems we encounter.

And though many would agree that literacy is still a valuable trait, few believe libraries retain their importance. Throughout history libraries have existed as sources of knowledge and information. During medieval times, books were often written in the form of illuminated manuscripts, carrying both physical and material heft, and as such were impossible for the masses to keep within their own homes. Instead they came to libraries, places of copious information when it was scarcely found elsewhere. READ MORE !