Original InvestigationPathogenesis and Treatment of Kidney DiseaseReadability of Written Materials for CKD Patients: A Systematic Review
Section snippets
Search Strategy
After advice from information specialists, experts, clinicians, and patients, we conducted an extensive search for CKD patient information materials in March 2014. This search involved obtaining patient education materials distributed at Australian hospitals and those distributed by Australian nephrologists in their clinical practice. Materials also were obtained from experts in the field, including CKD educators and PhD scholars conducting research involving CKD patient information needs.
Results
After removing duplicate materials found in more than one location, 494 materials were screened against criteria, and after screening, 94 remained (see Fig 1). These 94 consisted of information and advice on topics such as CKD (eg, what it is and who is at risk), related diseases (eg, diabetic kidney disease and renal bone disease), and lifestyle and self-management (eg, diet, exercise, and sexuality). Excluded materials included those that focused on dialysis, transplantation, or donation;
Discussion
We found that most written resources available for patients with CKD demand literacy levels beyond that of the average patient and well above that of low-literacy patients with CKD. Although clinician-patient communication is a critical part of any treatment plan, written patient information materials are an important vehicle for disseminating information to patients that they can review outside the clinical encounter.25 Previous investigations into the comprehensibility of patient materials
Acknowledgements
We thank Pamela Lopez-Vargas and Margaret Golding for assistance with sourcing of materials.
Data from this study were presented as a mini-oral presentation at the Australian and New Zealand Society of Nephrology’s Annual Scientific Meeting on August 27, 2014, in Melbourne, Australia.
Support: None.
Financial Disclosure: The authors declare that they have no relevant financial interests.
Contributions: Research idea and study design: ACW, KJM, JJ; data acquisition: MF; data analysis/interpretation:
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