https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4599-4291
Abstract
Plain language summaries of peer-reviewed medical journal publications are a means of sharing research with a broad range of audiences and may improve the transparency, accountability, accessibility, discoverability, and inclusivity of medical research. There is currently an ongoing, industry-wide effort to establish consensus on plain language summaries, and initiatives are already in place that provide detailed guidance on plain language best practice, co-creation methods, patient-focused content, graphic and digital considerations, and publisher-specific guidelines. However, there remains a need for a foundational set of recommendations that complement existing initiatives to outline the minimum steps needed to develop discoverable, plain language summaries that are trustworthy, credible, and of high quality. Here, we present the Open Pharma recommendations for plain language summaries of peer-reviewed medical journal publications. These recommendations were initially developed by the Open Pharma Accessibility workstream and were extensively reviewed and refined during an expert roundtable and a focused, public consultation. Open Pharma is a multi-sponsor collaboration of pharmaceutical companies, non-pharmaceutical funders, publishers, patients, academics, regulators, editors, and societies seeking to identify and drive positive changes in the publishing of pharmaceutical company-funded research. We recommend that plain language summaries should be in the style of an abstract, free of technical jargon, unbiased, non-promotional, peer reviewed, and easily accessed. Plain language summaries should also meet the technical requirements to be indexed in directories such as PubMed. Ultimately, these recommendations are intended to be a concise outline of a minimum standard that provides top-line guidance on plain language summaries for authors, medical writers, publishers, and research funders.
PLAIN LANGUAGE SUMMARY
Articles published in peer-reviewed medical journals are written using technical language. Plain language summaries are short summaries of these articles, written in everyday language that is easy to understand by anyone interested in medical research. This can include patients, patient advocates, caregivers, healthcare professionals, and policymakers. Sharing research through plain language summaries makes medical information more accessible and inclusive. However, few medical research articles include plain language summaries. The pharmaceutical industry has an opportunity to improve everyone’s understanding of medical research by regularly developing plain language summaries of their articles. Plain language summaries can come in many different formats such as infographics and videos. However, text-only summaries are the easiest to find on internet search engines and research websites such as PubMed. Currently, there is limited guidance available to help researchers and medical journal publishers develop plain language summaries for their articles. In this article, ‘Open Pharma recommendations for plain language summaries of peer-reviewed medical journal publications’, we suggest a set of simple rules to help authors make and share text-only plain language summaries that we believe are possible for all articles reporting medical research. Once these have been met, we encourage researchers to consider making and sharing infographics and video summaries as well, to help people to understand their research even more.
© 2021 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group
Plain language summaries of peer-reviewed medical journal publications are intended for everyone engaging with medical research, such as patients, patient advocates, caregivers, healthcare professionals, and policymakers. These summaries encourage discussions around medical research and aid informed and shared decision-making. With the broad range of stakeholders involved in pharmaceutical research, pharmaceutical companies are now in a strong position to make the medical publishing model more transparent. We believe that the next step of openness is to create a more accessible and inclusive environment through the routine development of plain language summaries of peer-reviewed medical journal publications.
There are many formats of plain language summaries, but text-based formats are the most discoverable through indexing in directories such as PubMed. Standardizing the minimum steps for the development and sharing of index-friendly plain language summaries can help promote the quality and credibility of these types of communications. The aim of a minimum standard is to build a universal foundation that encourages the accessibility, discoverability, and inclusivity of plain language summaries. This standard can then serve as a basis for summaries written for a more specific target audience or that include graphically and digitally enhanced formats that increase understanding and engagement, which we strongly encourage.
Open Pharma believes that, as a minimum standard, plain language summaries of peer-reviewed medical journal publications should be in the style of an abstract, understandable and readable, free of technical jargon, unbiased, non-promotional, peer reviewed, and easily accessed. As a minimum standard, we recommend that these plain language summaries are:
Targeted toward a broad, inclusive and non-technical, non-specialist, or time-challenged audience
Written in easily understandable, unbiased language that is free of expert or technical jargon and accessible to readers who may have a different first language to that of the summary
Text based and concise (of 250 words or fewer) – this allows for indexing in directories such as PubMed and facilitates straightforward translation
Explicitly linked to the source publication citation and relevant clinical trial identifiers, with brief reference to the existing evidence
Consistent with the same overall key points and conclusions as the scientific publication abstract
Developed alongside the main content of the manuscript, in line with the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors’ authorship criteria
Ideally reviewed by a non-expert during development
Fully peer reviewed alongside the main content
Made available to read free of charge alongside the scientific publication abstract
Tagged with appropriate metadata and keywords to improve discoverability in search engines, directories, and indexes.
A full report of the developmental discussions that guided these recommendations is available in the Supplemental document.
Transparency
Declaration of funding
This work was produced by the representatives of the Open Pharma Accessibility workstream. Open Pharma is a multi-sponsor collaboration facilitated by Oxford PharmaGenesis Ltd and receives sponsorship funding from Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc, AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP, Boehringer Ingelheim International GmbH, F. Hoffmann-La Roche AG, Galápagos NV, Gilead Sciences, Inc., GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals SA, Ipsen Biopharm Ltd, John Wiley & Sons Ltd, Novartis Pharma AG, Novo Nordisk A/S, Pfizer Inc, Takeda Development Center Americas, Inc, and UCB Biopharma SRL.
Declaration of financial/other relationships
AR and TK are employees of Oxford PharmaGenesis Ltd. SB is an employee of Galápagos NV and holds stock options. LF is an employee of UCB Pharma and may hold stock or stock options. WG is an employee and shareholder of Ipsen. REO is an employee and shareholder of F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd. AW is an employee and shareholder of Pfizer Inc. CW is an employee and Director of Oxford PharmaGenesis Ltd, and a Director and shareholder of Oxford PharmaGenesis Holdings Ltd. He is also a Director of Oxford Health Policy Forum CIC, Trustee of the Friends of the National Library of Medicine, and co-founder of Open Pharma.
Author contributions
All authors contributed to the drafting, development, and final approval of the work equally; all authors agree to be accountable for all aspects of the work. This work represents the opinions of the authors and not of their respective affiliations.
Supplemental Material
Download MS Word (116.5 KB)Acknowledgements
The authors thank all the participants of the Open Pharma roundtable and the respondents of the public consultation on the recommendations. Full acknowledgments are provided in the supplementary materials. No assistance in the preparation of this article is to be declared.
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