[Measuring health literacy can improve communication in health care].

A tool for measuring health literacy is desirable when tailoring health care services to individual patients. Existing tools measure the functional aspects of health literacy whereas newly developed tools have a broader scope and measure people's knowledge, motivation and competences to access, understand, appraise and apply health information. Two novel, international health literacy questionnaires have been translated and are being validated in a Danish context. The final questionnaires may assist Danish health professionals in shaping communication with patients and reduce health disparities.