Among the many things healthcare workers are expected to do is to educate their patients. This is meant to help the clients understand their conditions better so that they can remain compliant to prescribed medications and other instructions. Patient education handouts are one of the most effective ways of doing this. There are a number of things that you need to know as you prepare this type of material.
Before embarking on the project, you need to conduct research that will be aimed at helping you understand your audience better. Developing questionnaires will help you gather important information such as age, medical conditions they are being treated for, social status and so on. This will help you segment the larger group into smaller more homogeneous units. You may also use your prior experience to develop literature that addresses the frequently asked questions.
The text is what matters most in this project. Take your time and choose words that will best communicate your intended message. The level of vocabulary should be appropriate for the level of education of your audience. Short and concise sentences are easier to read and understand than long and convoluted explanations. One of the most effective formats is the question and answer method which makes it easier to remember the main message.
Adopt a professional tone in your writing and if you plan to include discussions in the material on various topics, do not be biased. Present all the views that exist and let the reader make their own decision. You may include advantages and disadvantages for each of the options presented so that they find it a bit easier to decide.
Always remember that handouts are about the patient-not you. The recommendation is that at least 80% of the content be dedicated to information related to the disease or medical condition. You can use the remaining 20% to tell the clients about what your facility can do to intervene in the progression of the said illness. As you will come to realize, if useful information is provided freely, you will retain most of your clients and even get more in referrals.
Make sure that the materials that you choose are durable since some patients may want to refer to them from time to time. This is especially useful for persons that are being treated for chronic or recurrent illnesses. Better still, get a bit more creative and turn them into everyday items such as bookmarks and calendars (on one of the pages).
The text should be more about the client and not you, the facility. The recommendation is that at least 80% should be related to issues of health promotion. You can use the remaining 20% to inform the readers about the services that are available in your facility. You will be surprised that the retention rate of pre-existing clients and referrals of new clients will both increase.
If you want patients to be compliant to their treatment then you need to educate them on the importance of this. Let them learn about the causes, the risk factors, the management of their condition and what role they are to play. Using handouts is one of the most effective ways of doing this. It is also fairly economical.
Before embarking on the project, you need to conduct research that will be aimed at helping you understand your audience better. Developing questionnaires will help you gather important information such as age, medical conditions they are being treated for, social status and so on. This will help you segment the larger group into smaller more homogeneous units. You may also use your prior experience to develop literature that addresses the frequently asked questions.
The text is what matters most in this project. Take your time and choose words that will best communicate your intended message. The level of vocabulary should be appropriate for the level of education of your audience. Short and concise sentences are easier to read and understand than long and convoluted explanations. One of the most effective formats is the question and answer method which makes it easier to remember the main message.
Adopt a professional tone in your writing and if you plan to include discussions in the material on various topics, do not be biased. Present all the views that exist and let the reader make their own decision. You may include advantages and disadvantages for each of the options presented so that they find it a bit easier to decide.
Always remember that handouts are about the patient-not you. The recommendation is that at least 80% of the content be dedicated to information related to the disease or medical condition. You can use the remaining 20% to tell the clients about what your facility can do to intervene in the progression of the said illness. As you will come to realize, if useful information is provided freely, you will retain most of your clients and even get more in referrals.
Make sure that the materials that you choose are durable since some patients may want to refer to them from time to time. This is especially useful for persons that are being treated for chronic or recurrent illnesses. Better still, get a bit more creative and turn them into everyday items such as bookmarks and calendars (on one of the pages).
The text should be more about the client and not you, the facility. The recommendation is that at least 80% should be related to issues of health promotion. You can use the remaining 20% to inform the readers about the services that are available in your facility. You will be surprised that the retention rate of pre-existing clients and referrals of new clients will both increase.
If you want patients to be compliant to their treatment then you need to educate them on the importance of this. Let them learn about the causes, the risk factors, the management of their condition and what role they are to play. Using handouts is one of the most effective ways of doing this. It is also fairly economical.
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If you would like to provide patient education handouts to your patients or customers, come to Vivacare. Let us show you how to create your own personalized health library when you visit us online at http://www.vivacare.com today.
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