What reading level should home care website content target?

Aim for a 5th to 6th grade reading level. This is accessible to the majority of US adults and reduces cognitive load for clients and caregivers managing stress, pain, or fatigue.

What is the universal precautions approach to health literacy?

It means making information as easy to understand and act on as possible for every visitor, instead of trying to assess individual literacy levels. Your clearest version should be the only and default version.

What accessibility standard should a home care website meet?

At minimum WCAG 2.1 AA. That includes 4.5 to 1 color contrast for body text, keyboard navigability, alt text on images, and captions on video content.

Should home care websites be translated into other languages?

Yes. Identify the languages most common among the families you serve and use certified translators to produce accurate, culturally appropriate versions of key pages.

How does plain language build trust with families?

Clear, jargon free communication shows respect for the reader, reduces confusion at stressful moments, and signals that your organization is transparent and easy to work with.

Health Literacy Best Practices for Home Care Websites

A practical reference guide for professionals developing home care websites, distilled from CDC, OHSU Center for Ethics, and World Health Organization guidance.

Covers plain language, universal precautions, visual hierarchy, multilingual content, open-ended prompts, and trust through transparency, with a complete website health literacy checklist.

Personal health literacy is the degree to which individuals can find, understand, and use information to make informed health decisions. Organizational health literacy is the degree to which organizations equitably enable people to do the same.

Plain language principles for web content: short sentences averaging 15 words or fewer, common everyday words over clinical terms, immediate definitions for any unavoidable medical terminology, active voice, and a 5th to 6th grade reading level.

Apply a universal precautions approach. Make information as easy as possible for everyone, never assume literacy based on demographics, and design for the most challenged user.

Prioritize information using the inverted pyramid. Identify one to three key messages per page and lead with them. Break content into short labeled sections so users can scan before they read.

Use visual hierarchy: headers, bullet points for lists of three or more, generous white space, body text at least 16 pixels, and color contrast meeting WCAG 2.1 AA at 4.5 to 1 minimum.

Use open-ended elicitation in forms and intake tools. Replace yes or no questions with prompts like 'What questions do you have about your care plan?' or teach-back style prompts.

Provide multilingual and culturally appropriate content. Use certified translators rather than automated tools alone, and adapt content for cultural norms around caregiving and family roles.

Build trust through transparency: identify your organization clearly, source information accurately, avoid fear-based messaging, make it easy to reach a real person, explain privacy practices, and meet WCAG 2.1 AA accessibility.

Health literacy checklist for home care websites covers content and language, design and accessibility, multilingual and cultural access, multimedia and format options, and trust and transparency.