Development and Evaluation of A Turkish Scale to Assess Medication Literacy for Adults

INTRODUCTION: The objective of this study was to develop a Turkish scale to assess medication literacy and evaluate its psychometric properties among adults having at least 12 years of education in Turkey.
METHODS: After the composition of a preliminary set of items, the content validity of the scale was assessed by an e-Delphi process and a pilot study. The psychometric properties of the scale were evaluated in 358 participants who had above 12 years of education; university students, academic and administrative staff from two faculties (pharmacy, law) in two universities (Marmara University and Ankara University) located in two different cities (Istanbul and Ankara) in Turkey between March 2021 and May 2021. The test-retest validity was assessed by Spearman’s rho and Wilcoxon test). Internal consistency was evaluated by Kuder Richardson 20. Principal component analysis was conducted.
RESULTS: The last version of the medication literacy scale consisted of 8 items. There was a positive correlation (Spearman’s rho=0.570; p<0.01) and no significant difference (p=0.308) between the scores of the scale at baseline and after a two-week interval. Kuder Richardson 20 coefficient was 0.659. Students and graduates of health sciences had significantly higher scores on the medication literacy scale when compared to participants who did not have any education in health sciences (the median [25th-75th percentiles]: 8.0 [8.0-8.0] vs 7.0 [6.0-8.0], respectively; p<0.001).
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: The Turkish version of MEdication Literacy Scale for Adults (MELSA-TR) is a valid tool to evaluate medication literacy among adults who have above 12 years of education in Turkey. Still the generalizability of our findings should be evaluated with caution since this study was conducted in a sample with a significant representation from healthcare professionals. It would be useful to conduct further studies evaluating the psychometric properties of this scale in participants with diverse characteristics.