March 10, 2006

Plain language is easy to understand, has no jargon and tells the reader what he or she needs to know.

Plain language: Key to understanding health information

Nearly half of all American adults have trouble understanding and using health information. This means that patients may be taking medicines incorrectly, signing consent forms they don't understand and getting discharged without knowing how to continue their care at home.

Health literacy problems affect people of all ages, races, education and income levels. Even good readers struggle to understand medical jargon, especially when they're sick, stressed or busy.

Understanding health information is a right of all patients, and making written materials more clear is the responsibility of all health care organizations. One way to do this is to use a writing technique called plain language, which has been adopted by many federal government agencies, law firms, private sector companies and health care organizations.

Plain language is easy to understand, has no jargon and tells the reader what he or she needs to know. It is not meant to "dumb down" but rather to make communication more clear. Organizations such as the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, the Institute of Medicine and the American Medical Association support the use of plain language.

At the MGH, Elizabeth Schneider, director of the Treadwell Library, has coordinated many plain-language activities — including sponsoring workshops and hosting a monthly lunchtime working group where employees can get help with writing and designing materials using plain language.

Some MGH departments have made major changes to improve communication using plain language. For example, the Cancer Center has formed an interdisciplinary Patient Education Steering Committee that reviews all patient materials for plain language. The Partnerswide Clinical Research Program has developed a new consent form and template in plain language. Many units within Patient Care Services now are writing patient materials using plain language. And the Patient Care Services Patient Education Committee, with Taryn Pittman of the Blum Patient and Family Learning Center as coach, uses plain-language in its resource materials and helps other MGH staff with their plain language efforts.

For more information or to schedule a plain language training session, contact Schneider at eschneider1@partners.org or Jennifer Wells, director of Communications for the MGPO, at jwells@partners.org.