The majority of PEMs available through Meditech and the
NLM are written at reading levels higher than what has
been recommended by expert groups. As EHR’s become
ubiquitous and health care providers become increasingly
pressed for time, the availability of accessible and comprehensible
PEMs becomes more important. Improving patient
comprehension of disease processes, prevention, and treatment
is a necessary step towards improving health outcomes.
Given health literacy’s enormous impact on our
healthcare system, it is crucial that EHR vendors and the
US government provide educational materials that are
written at appropriate reading levels designed for compreTable
4. Disease Topics At Target Readability in All Databases
Disease/Condition
Topic
Grade Reading Level (GFI) Example
Micromedex EBSCO MedlinePlus
Diaper Rash 7.6 8 7.3 “Clean your child's diaper area with plain, warm water. Allow the skin
to air dry, or gently pat it dry with a clean cloth. Do not use baby wipes
or soap during diaper changes. Before closing the new diaper, make
sure your child's bottom is completely dry.”—Micromedex
Irritable Bowel
Syndrome
7.9 8.1 7.1 “For this test the doctor inserts a long, thin tube, called a colonoscope,
into your anus and up into your colon. The tube has a light and tiny lens
on the end. The doctor can view the inside of your colon on a big
television screen.”—MedlinePlus
Scabies 7.2 7.9 7.9 “The scabies mite does not suck blood. It does not transmit any disease
other than scabies between people.”—EBSCO
JGIM Stossel et al.: Readability of Patient Education Materials 1169hension by patients at all levels of health literacy. Further
studies should assess the appropriateness of additional
strategies for educating low health literacy patients, such
as visual, animated, and interactive PEMs.