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There are many ways of passing information to patients within a healthcare facilities. One of the most effective yet economical option involves the use of patient education handouts. The handouts can be customized to communicate different messages and help in promoting the facility at the same time. There are four main components that are considered when preparing these handouts. These include the content, the illustrations to be included, the design and the production.
The content is the most important. It is what you should spend the most time on. It refers to the words (and the message) that will be contained on the brochure. You should ideally start by preparing an outline or rough draft of what you intend to pass across. Determine the ideas that are to be communicated in each paragraph and what format is to be adopted. The commonest format includes questions and answers.
If you have been practicing for some time, it should be fairly easy to come up with the questions that are frequently asked by patients and generate suitable answers to the same. You can team up with your colleagues to help generate more ideas. They will use their experiences to advice on the areas that should receive the greatest emphasis.
If you are dealing with a large heterogeneous group, try and break it down into smaller units. Segmentation can be done based on factors such as age, gender and common medical conditions among others. This will enable you develop a more targeted message. You can develop questionnaires that will help you establish important characteristics such as social status, reading levels and a brief medical history.
Choose a level of vocabulary that is in keeping with the level of education of most if not all your clients. The sentences that are used in the text should ideally be short, concise and with a specific objective. Avoid convoluted explanations that will lose the reader. Choose a smaller area of the subject matter even if it means having several titles existing separately. If you wish to discuss hypertension, focus on one area such as causes, treatments or complications.
Illustrations should be included to reduce the monotony of reading text and to add color to your presentation. They are broadly classified into two; informational and filler. Informational illustrations are meant to educate and serve to help explain an idea. Filler illustrations, on the other hand have no real value. They may include for example, a happy mother who has delivered a baby or a senior basking in the sun.
The design is the packaging process that is adopted. The type of design that is chosen will determine whether or not the material you have prepared will generate interest. The main considerations of design include color, font and readability. You may have to do some prior research to determine what would appeal to your target audience.
It is possible to outsource this process if you are too busy to design your own handouts or if you want them done professionally. Your role will be simply to state the content and how you want it presented. Unfortunately, this process costs a lot of money especially if you intend to produce several titles. Your ideas may also be misrepresented.
The content is the most important. It is what you should spend the most time on. It refers to the words (and the message) that will be contained on the brochure. You should ideally start by preparing an outline or rough draft of what you intend to pass across. Determine the ideas that are to be communicated in each paragraph and what format is to be adopted. The commonest format includes questions and answers.
If you have been practicing for some time, it should be fairly easy to come up with the questions that are frequently asked by patients and generate suitable answers to the same. You can team up with your colleagues to help generate more ideas. They will use their experiences to advice on the areas that should receive the greatest emphasis.
If you are dealing with a large heterogeneous group, try and break it down into smaller units. Segmentation can be done based on factors such as age, gender and common medical conditions among others. This will enable you develop a more targeted message. You can develop questionnaires that will help you establish important characteristics such as social status, reading levels and a brief medical history.
Choose a level of vocabulary that is in keeping with the level of education of most if not all your clients. The sentences that are used in the text should ideally be short, concise and with a specific objective. Avoid convoluted explanations that will lose the reader. Choose a smaller area of the subject matter even if it means having several titles existing separately. If you wish to discuss hypertension, focus on one area such as causes, treatments or complications.
Illustrations should be included to reduce the monotony of reading text and to add color to your presentation. They are broadly classified into two; informational and filler. Informational illustrations are meant to educate and serve to help explain an idea. Filler illustrations, on the other hand have no real value. They may include for example, a happy mother who has delivered a baby or a senior basking in the sun.
The design is the packaging process that is adopted. The type of design that is chosen will determine whether or not the material you have prepared will generate interest. The main considerations of design include color, font and readability. You may have to do some prior research to determine what would appeal to your target audience.
It is possible to outsource this process if you are too busy to design your own handouts or if you want them done professionally. Your role will be simply to state the content and how you want it presented. Unfortunately, this process costs a lot of money especially if you intend to produce several titles. Your ideas may also be misrepresented.
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