Technical University of Munich
Research unit
At TUM, health literacy as a research topic is represented through the TUM Health Literacy Unit and the TUM WHO Collaborating Centre for Health Literacy, located at the TUM School of Medicine and Health, Department of Health and Sport Sciences. The scientific and policy work of the Unit and the WHO CC is contributing to evidence creation in the field of health literacy research globally. A particular focus is on child, adolescent, and school health, international research collaborations, capacity building for global health literacy, as well as training and education of early career researchers.
Technical University of Munich (TUM)
The Technical University of Munich (TUM) is considered a “University of Excellence” in Germany and has positioned itself among the leading universities in research and innovation in Europe and beyond. TUM has four main campuses and numerous other special facilities outside the main campuses and internationally. The core areas engineering, medicine, public health, natural science, computation, technology, social sciences, management, life sciences, information and design are represented in 7 schools and through 666 professors that provide the academic foundation for more than 52 000 students. The aim is to actively promote talent through excellent education and research and to create sustainable value for society through an entrepreneurial mindset.
Dr. Orkan Okan
Dr. Orkan Okan is professor of health literacy at the TUM School of Medicine and Health at the Technical University of Munich, Germany. In December 2023, he established the WHO Collaborating Center for Health Literacy at TUM. Furthermore, Orkan leads the TUM Health Literacy Unit and is affiliated with the TUM Center for Health and Medicine in Society and the Center for Health Promotion in Childhood and Adolescence. Orkan has a background in school teaching, pedagogy, and public health. Prof. Okan's research covers all facets of health literacy in society and in different settings, focusing on disease prevention, health promotion, health care, and digitalization. His interdisciplinary research has a particular focus on child and adolescent health literacy as well as health literacy in schools. In this context, he is currently involved in various national, EU and Erasmus+ projects. He has advised and worked with governmental organizations and NGOs on health literacy, including WHO.
Orkan is vice president of the International Health Literacy Association (IHLA), president of the EUPHA Health Literacy Section, Deputy Chair of the IUHPE GWG Health Literacy, and Co-Chair of the Global Health Literacy Research Network (GLOBHL).
Marlene Meyer
Marlene Meyer has been working as a research fellow and PhD Student in the team of Prof. Okan at the Professorship of Health Literacy at the Technical University of Munich since April 2022. Previously, she completed her bachelor's degree in Psychology at the Martin-Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg and her master's degree in Neuro-cognitive Psychology at the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität in Munich. In her PhD thesis, she focuses on corona-specific health literacy of school principals.