Using the metaphor of a lily, the p

Using the metaphor of a lily, the petals (literacies) feed the pistil (eHealth literacy), and yet the pistil overlaps the petals, tying them together

Within the lily model, the six literacies are organized into two central types: analytic (traditional, media, information) and context-specific (computer, scientific, health).

The analytic component involves skills that are applicable to a broad range of information sources irrespective of the topic or context (Figure 2), while the context-specific component (Figure 3) relies on more situation-specific skills.

For example, analytic skills can be applied as much to shopping or researching a term paper as they can to health. Context-specific skills are just as important; however, their application is more likely to be contextualized within a specific problem domain or circumstance.

Thus, computer literacy is dependent upon what type of computer is used, its operating system, as well as its intended application. Scientific literacy is applied to problems where research-related information is presented, just as health literacy is contextualized to health issues as opposed to shopping for a new television set.

Yet, both analytic and context-specific skills are required to fully engage with electronic health resources.