Effective communication has been shown to be an important tool in healthcare provision. It ensures that patients fully understand their conditions and why they should adhere the treatments prescribed to them. Options that can be used to pass information to patients include, among others, radio and television advertisements, print media, the internet and health talks among others. Patient education handouts are becoming the preferred option for many centers.
The content of the handout is, without a doubt, the most important aspect of the exercise. Coming up with the message is also the most difficult task of the entire activity. The factors that will determine what goes to the brochure as the message include the type of disease being dealt with, the age and gender of patients. There may be a need to conduct some research beforehand to understand these segments.
The format chosen will also determine, to a large extent, the readability of your brochure. A commonly used format is that of titles and subtitles. Titles address the main topic while subtitles deal with smaller issues under this topic. In the case of diabetes, for example, the topics may include causes, signs and symptoms, diagnosis, treatment and so on. Subtitles under treatment may include, drugs, physical exercise, diet modification and so on. Question and answer format is also popular.
The level of vocabulary used should be understood by the target audience. If you are dealing with a heterogeneous group whose level of education is greatly variable, the safest thing to do is to use the simplest vocabulary. Ensure that the sentences are concise and straight to the point. Medical jargon should be avoided as much as possible and if there is a need to include it, it should be accompanied by definitions.
The importance of illustrations cannot be overemphasized. In general, you will have two types of illustrations to choose from. They include the informational and the filler types. Informational illustrations are usually included in the material for educational purposes. An example of this type is a heart showing the heart and its associated vessels. Fillers are mainly added to add color and to break the monotony of text. They would include, for instance, a happy client, images of medical equipment and so on.
If you need help in designing and producing a handout, you can outsource the process in part or in its entirety. Agencies that deal with such tasks will typically conduct thorough research on the facility and on the clients before creating the brochure. Outsourcing will free you and allow you to continue with your regular routine. Possibly the only disadvantage of this approach is that it makes the process more expensive.
Other than being important educational material, a handout may also be used as an advertising tool. This is done through informing the patients about the services that are provided in the facility. It is a professional requirement in many places that at least 80% of the brochure is dedicated to education and 20% used for advertisement. If the brochure is on hypertension, for example, the advertisement may relate to the forms of treatment for hypertension available.
There is a high probability that educational handouts will continue to be used for a long time to come. The conversion of the brochures into soft copies has made it possible to distribute the material quite easily electronically. Another modification that has encouraged their use is the adoption of more creative designs such as calendars and bookmarks.
The content of the handout is, without a doubt, the most important aspect of the exercise. Coming up with the message is also the most difficult task of the entire activity. The factors that will determine what goes to the brochure as the message include the type of disease being dealt with, the age and gender of patients. There may be a need to conduct some research beforehand to understand these segments.
The format chosen will also determine, to a large extent, the readability of your brochure. A commonly used format is that of titles and subtitles. Titles address the main topic while subtitles deal with smaller issues under this topic. In the case of diabetes, for example, the topics may include causes, signs and symptoms, diagnosis, treatment and so on. Subtitles under treatment may include, drugs, physical exercise, diet modification and so on. Question and answer format is also popular.
The level of vocabulary used should be understood by the target audience. If you are dealing with a heterogeneous group whose level of education is greatly variable, the safest thing to do is to use the simplest vocabulary. Ensure that the sentences are concise and straight to the point. Medical jargon should be avoided as much as possible and if there is a need to include it, it should be accompanied by definitions.
The importance of illustrations cannot be overemphasized. In general, you will have two types of illustrations to choose from. They include the informational and the filler types. Informational illustrations are usually included in the material for educational purposes. An example of this type is a heart showing the heart and its associated vessels. Fillers are mainly added to add color and to break the monotony of text. They would include, for instance, a happy client, images of medical equipment and so on.
If you need help in designing and producing a handout, you can outsource the process in part or in its entirety. Agencies that deal with such tasks will typically conduct thorough research on the facility and on the clients before creating the brochure. Outsourcing will free you and allow you to continue with your regular routine. Possibly the only disadvantage of this approach is that it makes the process more expensive.
Other than being important educational material, a handout may also be used as an advertising tool. This is done through informing the patients about the services that are provided in the facility. It is a professional requirement in many places that at least 80% of the brochure is dedicated to education and 20% used for advertisement. If the brochure is on hypertension, for example, the advertisement may relate to the forms of treatment for hypertension available.
There is a high probability that educational handouts will continue to be used for a long time to come. The conversion of the brochures into soft copies has made it possible to distribute the material quite easily electronically. Another modification that has encouraged their use is the adoption of more creative designs such as calendars and bookmarks.
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patient education handouts are now available on our official website. To learn more about these educational materials, go directly to this page http://www.vivacare.com.
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