Health inequity and the 5 domains of the Effective Consumer Scale 17 (EC-17).
| EC-17 Domain5 | Examples of PROGRESS-Plus15,16 factors and potential influence |
|---|---|
| Use of health information | Education: Consumers’ literacy levels influence the degree to which they are able to understand the health information they are given. For example, a consumer with low literacy may have difficulty following written instructions on a medication bottle |
| Clarifying personal priorities | Occupation: The daily responsibilities of consumers may influence their priorities. For example, a worker might prefer a drug that improves function with less value placed on side effects, whereas a student may prefer a drug with fewer cognitive side effects at the cost of increased pain |
| Communicating with others | Race/ethnicity: Language barriers may prevent effective communication between a consumer and healthcare providers |
| Negotiating roles and taking control | Race/ethnicity, Gender, Age: Cultural values, generational cohorts, and structured gender roles can influence the negotiation between consumers and their providers, i.e., affect the degree to which one feels comfortable questioning a provider’s advice. For example, some older generational cohorts were taught to respect the authority of physicians and accept their decision unconditionally |
| Deciding and taking action | Socioeconomic status: Some desired actions may be difficult for those with lower socioeconomic status (e.g., switching to a more expensive drug or health technology) |
PROGRESS: Place of residence, Religion, Occupation, Gender, Race/ethnicity, Education, Socioeconomic status, Social networks and capital; Plus: Additional factors age, sexual orientation, disabilities.