Article Date: 31 Jul 2013 - 0:00 PDT Current ratings for:
NHS patient information leaflets are "inaccurate, inconsistent and confusing", UK
The NHS's patient information leaflets are "inaccurate, inconsistent, and confusing and effort is duplicated" argues GP Margaret McCartney on bmj.com.
In a feature published on 30 July, Dr McCartney says the NHS is "awash" with patient information and with many trusts commissioning leaflets from external companies and others writing their own, it is difficult to know how efficient and effective these leaflets are.
In a personal view, Dr McCartney says the NHS is "awash" with patient information and with many trusts commissioning leaflets from external companies and others writing their own, it is difficult to know how efficient and effective these leaflets are.
Previous studies have shown that leaflets are providing patients with inconsistent guidance and others are giving conflicting advice. As such, patients are being given very different information depending on where they live.
A study carried out on one set of leaflets for the removal of kidney stones found they did not consistently mention common complications and had a wide variation of information on drugs and pain-killers. Furthermore, complications were often inadequately explained.
Sir Muir Gray, co-chair of the executive council of the Information Standard (a scheme for organisations producing evidence based healthcare information for the public), said "It's a stupid system, a waste of money, and, without rigorous standards [...] the information is biased and misleading".
McCartney says that the problem of varying leaflets is not new: a BMJ investigation in 1998 found inaccuracies and outdated information in leaflets given out by general practitioners.
One researcher at the University of Oxford says the problem is that "the NHS still fails to take this seriously", adding that, at the moment, in most NHS trusts there is no one who has responsibility. This means that leaflets can end up amateurish "with the evidence and uncertainties not expressed clearly".
One spokesman told the BMJ that NHS England is, however, launching a "major project" in September which they hope will "standardise all information".
McCartney concludes that the challenge now is "to adopt high standards [...] updating information regularly and making it easily accessible". She adds that "this is one area of the NHS where efficiency savings look ripe for the picking".
Article adapted by Medical News Today from original press release. Click 'references' tab above for source.Visit our public health section for the latest news on this subject. Please use one of the following formats to cite this article in your essay, paper or report:
MLA
31 Jul. 2013.
Please note: If no author information is provided, the source is cited instead.
'NHS patient information leaflets are "inaccurate, inconsistent and confusing", UK'
Please note that we publish your name, but we do not publish your email address. It is only used to let you know when your message is published. We do not use it for any other purpose. Please see our privacy policy for more information.
If you write about specific medications or operations, please do not name health care professionals by name.
All opinions are moderated before being included (to stop spam). We reserve the right to amend opinions where we deem necessary.
Contact Our News Editors
For any corrections of factual information, or to contact the editors please use our feedback form.
Please send any medical news or health news press releases to:
Note: Any medical information published on this website is not intended as a substitute for informed medical advice and you should not take any action before consulting with a health care professional. For more information, please read our terms and conditions.
No comments:
Post a Comment