And thus, Janet, your story effectively illustrates that WE ALL have low
health literacy -- and NO ONE teaches healthcare professionals how to
effectively communicate with patients - no matter their education or
socio-economic standing.  So while those in the literacy field need to help
adult learners access health information their will not be real change until
we can work with in the healthcare system and medical schools -- which I'm
happy to tell you there are plenty of doctors, nurses and writers (Including
many on this listserve) working on right now.

On Wed, Mar 26, 2008 at 11:42 AM, Janet Sorensen <Jsorensen at afmc.org> wrote:


>  Since I'm not quite as formally educated or experienced on this subject

> as the rest of you, I have a question from a personal as well as

> professional perspective.

>

> As I'm sure many of you have experienced, I'm often handed printed

> materials in the course of my own health care (or a loved one's), or asked

> to fill out forms that I am tempted to rewrite, redesign and hand back to

> the health care provider or staff member. As a writer, I've seriously

> considered doing this (but waiting until my or my relative's health care

> crisis or issue has been resolved). Is there a graceful, persuasive and

> nonoffensive way to make suggestions to health care providers regarding,

> say, written materials, preop and postop materials and processes, and so

> forth? Anything that has worked or specifically NOT worked for you in

> winning support from health care providers or others who are in a position

> to make seemingly simple changes? I don't want to come across as a

> know-it-all because, for one thing, I don't know it all, and also because

> such an approach or attitude would not serve our purpose.

>

> An example -- during my pregnancy, I was referred for a diagnostic

> ultrasound because of my "advanced maternal age" and because I had decided

> against amniocentesis. After the ultrasound, the high-risk OB again tried to

> talk me into amnio and again I politely refused. He said the ultrasound

> looked ok but would be read in more detail later. A few days later, I got a

> form letter. The first *four paragraphs* talked about Down syndrome, what

> it is, risk factors, "markers," and so forth, and how women with "advanced

> maternal age" are at greater risk. In the fifth paragraph, it explained that

> my ultrasound was (fill in the blank) negative for all of the Down syndrome

> markers. But by then I had already assumed my unborn child had Down syndrome

> and was freaking completely out. I ran the Gunning-Fog on it out of

> curiosity, and it was higher than 12th grade, besides just being badly

> written and badly organized.

>

> When I mentioned this experience to my own personal OB (not the high-risk

> guy) and said that I thought the letter could have been written more

> effectively for the audience, he said it's too bad these uneducated people

> can't read nowadays. I agreed and said it's also too bad some educated

> people can't write nowadays. It occurs to me now, that probably wasn't the

> best response for building collaboration and support...I'm blaming hormones.

>

> I'm asking now because I just went through a grueling pre-op process at an

> academic medical center with my 76-year-old mom, and we had to fill out the

> exact same detailed form at five different clinics, although they have

> electronic records there. I had to help an old man in one of the various

> waiting rooms, who could not bend his arm and had no one to help him write.

> And that's just the beginning. But I will stop now.

>

> Any words of advice on how I could effectively offer my own, for the sake

> of my blood pressure if nothing else? I realize health literacy and health

> communication are huge and evolving fields of study, and we need scholarly

> papers and more research, but we also need front-line fighters. Or maybe

> guerilla is a better term. Polite and respectful, of course. Any response

> will be appreciated. thx jps

>

> Janet Sorensen

> Web Writer

> Arkansas Foundation for Medical Care

> 501-212-8644

>

>

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-- 
Lisa Bernstein
Executive Director
The What To Expect Foundation
144 W. 80th Street
New York, NY 10024
212-712-9764
www.whattoexpect.org

Providing prenatal health and literacy support so that women in need know
what to expect when expecting.
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