[Evaluation of quality and accessibility of health education materials. II. The opinion of patients]

Abstract

The study on quality and accessibility of educational materials for patients was taken up in Health Promotion Department of the National Institute of Hygiene and the Mazovian Centre of Public Health in 2003. The questionnaire contained demographic information (gender, age, civil state, residence, employment and level of education), and questions about patients' opinions concerning the sources of health information (usefulness for knowledge enlargement, use in everyday life and perceived truth). The data were obtained from 110 patients living in Warsaw, who waited for visit in dispensaries or had treated in hospitals. The patients pointed television (54.5% of respondents), members of family (50.9%), physician or nurse in the course of consultations (48.2%), journals (46.4%) and friends (43.6%) as the sources, which most frequently provided health information. Women significantly more frequently than men acquired health information from journals (respectively: 53.8% and 26.7%), while men more frequently than women received health information from physicians or nurses in course of visits (respectively: 66.7% and 41.3%). As regards to age, the younger patients significantly more frequently acquired health information from family (younger group--61.2%, medium group--37.9%, elder group - 28,2%), friends (respectively: 55.2%, 27.2%, 21.4%) and from educational materials exposed in specific dispensaries (respectively: 44.8%, 17.2%, 14.3%). The elder patients more frequently received health information from physicians or nurses in course of consultations (elder group--85.7%, medium group--62.1%, younger group--34.3%). In comparison with other sources, the highest percentage of respondents assessed health information received from physician or nurse as very useful for enlargement their knowledge, use in their everyday life and very true, however, this percentage is low (respectively: 29.0%, 25.7% and 46.7%). Our findings confirm the need to elaborate health education materials more adequate to patients' expectations.