RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Nuclear Medicine and Resources for Patients: How Complex are Online Patient Educational Materials?
JF Journal of Nuclear Medicine Technology
JO J. Nucl. Med. Technol.
FD Society of Nuclear Medicine
SP jnmt.117.203380
DO 10.2967/jnmt.117.203380
A1 Hansberry, David R
A1 Shah, Kush
A1 Agarwal, Nitin
A1 Kim, Sung M
A1 Intenzo, Charles M
YR 2018
UL http://tech.snmjournals.org/content/early/2018/01/31/jnmt.117.203380.abstract
AB The Internet is a major source of healthcare information for patients. The American Medical Association and National Institutes of Health recommend that consumer healthcare websites be written between a 3rd and 7th grade level. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the level of readability of patient education websites pertaining to nuclear medicine. Methods: Ten search terms were Googled and the top 10 links for each term were collected and analyzed for their level of readability using 10 well-established readability scales. Results: Collectively the 99 articles were written at an 11.8 grade level (standard deviation of 3.4). Only 5 of the 99 articles were written at the NIH and AMA recommended 3rd to 7th grade. Conclusion: There is a clear discordance between the readability level of nuclear medicine related imaging terms with the NIH and AMA guidelines. This disconnect may negatively impact patient understanding contributing to poor health outcomes.