The Suitability of Written Education Materials for Stroke Survivors and Their Carers
Topics in Stroke RehabilitationPublished 1 October 2003
Sally Eames, Kryss McKenna, Linda Worrall, Stephen Read
Citations109
SJR quartileQ1
SJR score0.76
SNIP1.27
Generate an AI Snapshot to get a quick, structured summary of this paper.
Study Snapshot
ObjectiveStudy objective
MethodsResearch methodology
PopulationPopulation studied
Sample sizeSample sizes
OutcomesStudy outcomes here
ResultsStudy results comes here
LimitationsResearch study limitations comes here
A concise AI-generated summary of the paper will appear here once you click Generate AI Snapshot.
TL;DR
Evaluated written materials for stroke survivors and their carers found simple materials that meet clients’ information needs and design preferences may optimally inform them about stroke.
Abstract
This study evaluated the suitability of written materials for stroke survivors and their carers. Twenty stroke survivors and 14 carers were interviewed about the stroke information they had received and their perceptions of the content and presentation of materials of increasing reading difficulty. The mean readability level of materials (grade 9) was higher than participants' mean reading ability (grade 7-8). Satisfaction with materials decreased as the content became more difficult to read. Seventy-five percent reported that their information needs were not met in hospital. More stroke survivors with aphasia wanted support from health professionals to read and understand written information, and identified simple language, large font size, color, and diagrams to complement the text as being important features of written materials. Simple materials that meet clients' information needs and design preferences may optimally inform them about stroke.
Keywords
Social SciencesMedicineHealth Professions
JAMAHealth Literacy Among Medicare Enrollees in a Managed Care Organization
874 Citations1999Julie A. Gazmararian
Elderly managed care enrollees may not have the literacy skills necessary to function adequately in the health care environment, and low health literacy may impair elderly patients' understanding of health messages and limit their ability to care for their medical problems.
BMJSharing decisions with patients: is the information good enough?
633 Citations1999Angela Coulter, Vikki Entwistle +1 more
Shared decision making, in which patients and health professionals join in both the process of decision making and ownership of the decision made, is attracting considerable interest as a means by which patients' preferences can be incorporated into clinical decisions.
Occupational therapy for physical dysfunction
576 Citations1977Mary Vining Radomski, Catherine Latham
Assessing abilities and capacities: cognition, vision, visual perception, and praxis / Mary Vining Radomski.
British Journal of Clinical PsychologySatisfaction, compliance and communication
455 Citations1982Philip Ley
It is concluded that dissatisfaction with communication remains widespread, as does lack of compliance with medical advice, and theoretical approaches to communication and compliance should be used to direct future research.
StrokePatients’ Awareness of Stroke Signs, Symptoms, and Risk Factors
363 Citations1997Rashmi Kothari, Laura Sauerbeck +5 more
Almost 40% of patients admitted with a possible stroke did not know the signs, symptoms, or risk factor of a stroke.
Psychology Health & MedicineThe use of readability formulas in health care
330 Citations1996Philip Ley, Tony Florio
Findings show that much of the material written for patients and clients, in the areas of informed consent, illnesses and their investigation and treatment, and lifestyle advice, is too difficult for many of them to understand.
The American Journal of MedicineA controlled trial of two forms of self-management education for adults with asthma
323 Citations1993Sandra R. Wilson, Peter Scamagas +9 more
Carefully designed asthma education programs for adults can improve patients' understanding of their condition and its treatment and increase their motivation and confidence that the condition can be controlled, thereby increasing their adherence to the treatment regimen and management of symptoms and, in turn, improving control of symptoms.
PEDIATRICSReading Ability of Parents Compared With Reading Level of Pediatric Patient Education Materials
248 Citations1994Terry C. Davis, Edward J. Mayeaux +4 more
This study demonstrates that parents' self-reported education level will not accurately indicate their reading ability, and testing is needed to screen at-risk parents for low reading levels.
StrokeRandomized Controlled Trial of a Comprehensive Stroke Education Program for Patients and Caregivers
227 Citations1999Helen Rodgers, Catherine Atkinson +4 more
BMJHelping patients access high quality health information
207 Citations1999Sasha Shepperd, David Charnock +1 more
Patient Education and CounselingMeasuring information needs among cancer patients
177 Citations2001Ilse Mesters, Bart van den Borne +2 more
Findings suggested that the need for information about disease and treatment is less stable over time than need forInformation about access to help and solutions, which indicates some stability of scores.
The Journal of ReadingLix and Rix: Variations on a Little-Known Readability Index.
164 Citations1983Jonathan Anderson
Patient Education: A Practical Approach
157 Citations1992Kate Lorig
Clinical RehabilitationPatients' satisfaction with stroke services
147 Citations1994Pandora Pound, Patrick Gompertz +1 more
Patient satisfaction with stroke services is a key aspect of the evaluation of the quality of services but there are no adequate means of assessing satisfaction in this area and a high level of dissatisfaction was uncovered.
Patient Education and CounselingPatient information leaflets for medicines: using consumer testing to determine the most effective design
141 Citations2001David Dickinson, David K. Raynor +1 more
This research demonstrates the benefits of consumer testing, ensuring that leaflets are patient-orientated, and indicates that a rigid model leaflet would prevent these benefits from being utilised.
Age and AgeingPerceptions and Knowledge of Stroke among Surviving Patients with Stroke and Their Carers
132 Citations1994Ian Wellwood, Martin Dennis +1 more
Carers were significantly more likely than patients to want know all the details about the patients' condition and treatment, to discuss the risk of recurrence, to receive written information and to join information groups, yet they were better able to identify general risk factors for stroke.
PubMedPatient literacy and the readability of written cancer educational materials.
132 Citations1995Cooley Me, Heather K. Moriarty +4 more
Whether the reading level of educational materials for patients with cancer corresponds to the reading abilities of a sample of patients is determined and written materials may not be the only desirable mode of instruction.
StrokeAnticoagulant Patient Information Material Is Written at High Readability Levels
121 Citations2000Carlos A. Estrada, Mary Martin Hryniewicz +3 more
Patient education materials related to the use of anticoagulants are written at grade levels beyond the comprehension of most patients, and low-literacy brochures are needed for patients on anticogulants.
Clinical RehabilitationSatisfaction with information and advice received by stroke patients
118 Citations1997Paul O’Mahony, Helen Rodgers +3 more
Deficits in the provision of adequate information and advice to stroke patients on relevant issues have been identified and need to be addressed by those providing care for stroke patients in order to improve patient satisfaction.
Clinical RehabilitationWhat do patients and their carers want to know about stroke? A two-year follow-up study
115 Citations1998Carl Hanger, Gary Walker +3 more
Patients with stroke continue to have unanswered questions even two years after their stroke, and the types of questions asked changed over time.
PubMedImproving long-term outcome after stroke--the views of patients and carers.
99 Citations1992G Greveson, Oliver James
The results show that most care and support came from informal sources, formal services were poorly targeted and a third of carers were under considerable strain.
Orthopaedic NursingDeveloping and Evaluating Printed Education Materials: A Prescriptive Model for Quality
91 Citations1993Mary Jane Bernier
The use of the Evaluating Printed Education Materials (EPEM) model is described as a prescriptive guide and quality standard for developing new PEMs or critiquing existing ones.
BMJHow readable are practice leaflets?
86 Citations1992T. Albert, Sara L. Chadwick
This work examined 85 practice leaflets from the Avon area using accepted techniques of good written communication and used a simple index of readability (the "fog" test) to compare the clarity of the language used in leaflets with that in outside publications.
Patient Education and CounselingReadability and content analysis of print cholesterol education materials
71 Citations1990Karen Glanz, Joël Rudd
The readability assessment revealed that the average reading grade level was close to Grade 11, which is too difficult for many adults, and content analysis suggested a need to better address other heart disease risk factors, portion size and the use of brand name food recommendations.
Patient Education and CounselingReadability of patient information booklets for women with breast cancer
68 Citations1997Kinta Beaver, Karen Luker
Generally the information booklets available to women with breast cancer were found to have a high reading age, arguably not suitable for the majority of the United Kingdom (UK) population.
The Journal of Continuing Education in NursingLow Literacy Levels in Adults: Implications for Patient Education
37 Citations1999Evelyn J. Fisher
There is a need for nurses to be aware of the prevalence of low literacy and how to accurately assess reading ability and develop material that is at the appropriate level for patients and caregivers.
Patient Education and CounselingPatients should participate in designing diabetes educational content
28 Citations1990Sally P. Duchin, Sharon A. Brown
It is supported that patients should be included when planning diabetes patient education activities and a high degree of congruence between patient and nurse content rankings is indicated.
Journal of Health EducationEffective Ways to Improve Health Education Materials
20 Citations1999Ted Buxton
Methods are described for preparing more effective health education materials drawn primarily from advertising copywriting, the Elaboration Likelihood Model of persuasion, and literacy research to increase the chances that the audience will notice, read, comprehend, accept, and remember the written health messages.
Journal of Cardiopulmonary RehabilitationDetermination of the Readability of Educational Materials for Patients With Cardiac Disease
6 Citations1993G. Curt Meyer, Patricia M. Owen +4 more