Assessing the eHealth Literacy Skills of Older Adults: A Preliminary Study

The purpose of this study was to assess the ability of older adults (ages 55-69) to access, use, and understand online health information, known as eHealth literacy skills. Forty-eight older adults (mean age range = 60-65 years) participated. Participants' expressed low confidence in their perceived ability to evaluate the quality of health web sites (48%, n = 23) and apply the information retrieved in making health-related decisions (52%, n = 25). Potential avenues for promoting user confidence to retrieve trustworthy health information could support the eHealth literacy skills in this population.