Are patients comprehending? A critical assessment of online patient educational materials

Abstract

Purpose: The primary aim of this study was to evaluate the readability, understandability, suitability and actionability of online psoriasis patient educational materials. A secondary aim was to identify areas for improvement.

Materials and methods: We conducted an evaluation study to assess online psoriasis patient educational materials from the American Academy of Dermatology and National Psoriasis Foundation available in July 2017. We used two validated assessment tools specific to online healthcare materials. Outcomes were expressed as percentages, where higher percentages corresponded to higher quality materials.

Results: Overall, the educational materials had a mean understandability score (72.7%) that was understandable; a suitability score (58.8%) that was adequate; a reading grade level (10.5) that was not readable; and an actionability score (54.7%) that was not actionable. Areas of improvement include reading grade level, visual aids, word choice, specific steps for actions and cultural appropriateness.

Conclusions: Online psoriasis patient educational materials are understandable and suitable, but they are written above the American Medical Association and National Institutes of Health’s recommended 6th–8th grade reading level and are not actionable. Materials can benefit from decreasing reading grade level, including more visual elements, incorporating more actionable items and being culturally inclusive.

Keywords:

• Psoriasis
• online patient educational materials
• patient education
• Suitability Assessment of Materials
• Patient Education Materials Assessment Tool

Acknowledgements

We would like to acknowledge our colleagues in the Department of Dermatology at the Keck School of Medicine of University of Southern California.

Disclosure statement

April W. Armstrong, MD, MPH has no financial conflict of interest with regards to this manuscript. Other disclosures include having served as an investigator and/or advisor to AbbVie, Eli Lilly, Janssen, Modernizing Medicine, Novartis, Pfizer, Regeneron, Sanofi, Science 37, and Valeant. Other authors report no conflicts of interest.