A case study of the health literacy of a criminalized woman.

Research evidence substantiates that the lives of criminalized women are largely characterized by poverty, abuse, homelessness, co-morbidities, low literacy, and limited education, with the predominant characterization of criminalized women as under-educated, disinterested, and/or incapable of engaging in health-promoting self-care. Using a case study design, the purpose of this study was to develop a greater understanding of the health promotion activities and health literacy capabilities of a woman serving an open custody sentence, in Ontario, Canada whose health literacy capabilities contrast with the predominant narrative of criminalized women. Findings from this research raise critical questions concerning the ‘health literacy’ of the healthcare system itself, wherein health literacy discussions have traditionally targeted how the activities of individual clients promote or inhibit health, while health professionals and the healthcare system have gone largely unchallenged. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]