TITLE:
The Readability of Online Patient Education Materials from Major Anesthesiology Associations and the American Society of Anesthesiologists
AUTHORS:
Lawrence Chinn, Sean McGuirt, Shawn Puri
KEYWORDS:
Readability; Patient Education; Health Literacy; Reading Grade Level
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Anesthesiology,
Vol.4 No.1,
January
9,
2014
ABSTRACT:
Background: As much as
80% of US adults search online for health related information. The value of the
information
is limited by the patients’ ability to comprehend it. Despite the recommendation
by the American Medical Association (AMA) to provide all patient education materials (PEMs)
at a 6th grade reading level, many online sources do not conform. This study aims to evaluate the readability of PEMs from major online sources
for anesthesiology. Methods: We
determined the readability of PEMs from five major anesthesiology organizations
and twelve brochures from the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) using
ten validated readability scales. PEMs from the various anesthesiology websites
were compiled into a single word document for analysis. The twelve patient
education brochures from the ASA were downloaded and analyzed separately. We
then grouped the twelve documents into one sample and compared it to the other
anesthesiology association websites. Results: All of the PEMs provided by the
ASA were determined to be higher than a 6th grade reading level with nine being at a 12th grade reading level or above. The PEMs of
the five major anesthesiology association websites were beyond the 6th grade reading level with four out of five at
greater than the 12th grade
reading level. Conclusion: The results showed that the readability of PEMs
provided by five major anesthesiology associations and the ASA was beyond the 6th grade. Therefore, the PEMs with improved readability in anesthesiology are
needed.