title: Evaluation of the Readability of Dermatological Postoperative Patient Information Leaflets Across England.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Postoperative patient information leaflets (PILs) provide important guidance to patients after skin surgery. Readability is a method of evaluating information for text comprehension. The recommended level for PIL readability is US grade ≤6.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the readability of public English dermatological postoperative PILs.
  
  
  METHODS
  All dermatology departments in England were requested to provide their postoperative PILs. Patient information leaflets were evaluated using Readability Studio (Oleander Software, Vandalia, OH). Two preselected parameters were also noted: whether the PIL was doctor or nurse-written, and whether the PIL was Information Standard hallmarked.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Eighty-five of one hundred thirty (65.4%) of PILs were evaluated. Only 29.4% of the PILs were grade level ≤6 with Flesch-Kincaid. The mean readability levels were 7.8 for Flesch-Kincaid, 67 for Flesch reading ease, 10.5 for Simple Measure of Gobbledygook (SMOG), 9.4 for Gunning-Fog, 8 for Fry, and 9.8 for FORCAST. No instruments demonstrated a significant difference between doctor (6) and nurse-written (7) PILs. Two instruments found that the 3 Information Standard hallmarked PILs had a higher (harder) readability than ordinary PILs (n = 82) (Gunning-Fog, p = .029*; SMOG p = .049*).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Most English postoperative dermatological PILs' readability levels exceed recommendations (US grade ≤6). Departmental PILs should be reviewed to ensure that they are comprehensible to their patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, The Royal Devon and Exeter NHS Foundation Trust, Exeter, Devon, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: William T N
authors.initials: WT
authors.lastname: Hunt
authors.forename: Emily J
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: McGrath
mesh_terms: D032882:Comprehension; D004739:England; D006801:Humans; D000067010:Literacy; D010174:Pamphlets; D010353:Patient Education as Topic; D011932:Reading; D012871:Skin Diseases / Q000601:surgery*