OHSU Health Literacy Symposium
Innovating for Better Results in Health Care, Education, and Research
The 2025 OHSU Health Literacy Symposium will highlight health literacy and clear communication best practices in health care, education, and research. Attendees will learn how to identify patient equity, quality, and safety issues that are best approached with health literacy and clear communication solutions. Attendees will get hands-on skills practice in applying clear communication strategies to their work that can improve outcomes for all.
The symposium aims to help attendees:
- Identify current communication barriers that affect health-related outcomes.
- Apply health literacy best practices in health care, education, and research.
- Use health literacy tools and communication resources in their area of practice.
The event will feature a lunch and poster session, two plenary talks, and two concurrent breakout sessions, each with three mini workshops to choose from. This year we are excited welcome Dr. Mary Ann Abrams of Ohio State University College of Medicine and Nationwide Children's Hospital as our Keynote Speaker. The event will be in-person only and there are limited seats available to non-OHSU employees. Box lunch is included.
Accreditation: Oregon Health & Science University School of Medicine is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) to provide continuing medical education for physicians.
Credit: OHSU School of Medicine designates this live activity for a maximum of 3.5 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
Thursday, October 16, 2025
Lunch & Posters: 11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
Program: 12:30 p.m. - 5 p.m.
OHSU Auditorium
3286 SW Research Drive
Portland, OR 97239
Registration Fees
$50 with CME
$25 without CME
Registration: Click here to register.
Submit a Poster Proposal: Click here to submit a proposal.
This event is fully in-person. There will be no virtual links for attendance.
Speakers & Topics
Welcome - OHSU Health Literacy Symposium
Donn Spight, M.D., FACS, FASMBS
Vice President, Health Equity
Topic: Giving Feedback Using the ADAPT Framework
Briana Ketterer, M.D., M.S., FACP
Assistant Professor of Medicine, Division of Hematology/Medical Oncology
Communication Coach, OHSU Center for Ethics
Topic: Summary & Next Steps
Cliff Coleman, M.D., MPH
Professor of Family Medicine
Doris & Mark Storms Chair in Compassionate Communication, OHSU Center for Ethics in Health Care
Clinical Thread Director for Professionalism, Ethics, and Communication, OHSU School of Medicine
Chair, Institutional Health Literacy Workgroup
Topic: Organizational Systems Change, Health Literacy, Teach Back
Mary Ann Abrams, M.D., MPH
Clinical Assistant Professor, Ohio State University College of Medicine
GME Quality Improvement Medical Director, Nationwide Children’s Hospital
Concurrent Workshop Sessions A
Topic: Completing Document Reviews
Lia Sebring, M.S.
Practice Manager, OHSU Hemostasis and Thrombosis Center
Topic: Evaluating the Health Literacy Environment
Megan Pugmire, B.A.
Associate Vice President, OHSU Brand Strategy
Topic: Creating a Case for Health Literacy Support
Banning Hendriks, MBA
Vice President, Patient Experience and Relations
Concurrent Workshop Sessions B
Topic: Promoting and Using Teach Back
Mary Ann Abrams, M.D., MPH
Clinical Assistant Professor, Ohio State University College of Medicine
GME Quality Improvement Medical Director, Nationwide Children’s Hospital
Topic: Using Health Literacy & Legal Language in Consent Forms
Brandi Fleck, B.S., Assistant IRB Manager, OHSU
Triana Nagel, B.S., CIP, Research Integrity Specialist, OHSU
Topic: Using Health Literacy to Make Your Documents More Accessible for People with Disabilities
Larissa Yoshino, MPH, Data and Communication Manager for OHSU University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities
Kiersi Coleman, BSW, IDD Researcher for OHSU University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities
Previous Events
The inaugural OHSU Health Literacy Symposium was held on Thursday, October 17 and showcased clear communication strategies and campus projects to more effectively engage with patients, research participants, and community members across OHSU’s many programs. OHSU faculty, staff, learners and administrators were inspired by innovative approaches to help OHSU reach the ambitious goal of becoming a model health literate organization. The symposium aimed to help attendees:
- Describe organizational health literacy and describe the elements of a health literate organization.
- Identify current communication barriers that affect health-related outcomes.
- Identify clear communication strategies to improve equitable access to understandable information in clinical, educational, and research settings.
The event featured eight academic research and project posters, and nine projects across all mission areas in the breakout sessions. More than 130 people attended the symposium, including members who joined virtually from Klamath Falls, Scappoose, Bend, and Colorado.
View the 2024 symposium program here.
View the OHSU Now post recapping the event here.