Finding Easy-to-Read and Multilingual Materials for Your Patrons An Infopeople Webinar December 1, 2008 Kelli Ham, Consumer Health Librarian.
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Finding Easy-to-Read and Multilingual Materials for Your Patrons An Infopeople Webinar December 1, 2008 Kelli Ham, Consumer Health Librarian Agenda Overview of issues surrounding health information materials for lower literacy users Easy-to-read information resources Multilingual health information Community assessment and partnerships Objectives Participants will be able to: Recognize components of easy-to-read materials Assess health information materials quickly for readability and quality Navigate to appropriate online easy-to-read and multilingual resources Identify community partners for innovative solutions specific to your community Easy-to-Read Materials For our purposes today: Easy-to-read indicates that the words, content, and design are chosen specifically so that the material is easier to read and understand by people who have difficulties reading readily available materials. Reading levels of health information: Only a small percentage of readily-available health information is truly written in plain language that is easy-to-read. Some of the Issues What reading level is Easy-to-Read? Most health materials are written at higher than 6th grade level Who decides? No broad standards for health-related materials No standards exist; just recommendations 4th to 6th grade reading level Digital divide limits access to many resources Components of Easy-to-Read Materials Plain language text without ambiguity Pictures or illustrations: Take one pill with your breakfast Graphics aid in understanding Typography Serif-type fonts are easier to read Times New Roman is a serif font; Lucida is not Larger type (12-14 pt) Design elements Plenty of white space Additional Elements 3 or 4 main concepts Action verbs and concrete nouns Visuals illustrate the action, tell the story Limits use of jargon, abbreviations, symbols Use short sentences and words with fewer syllables Tested with target audience At a Glance: Determining Readability Levels Easier Harder Readable versus Understandability Format of materials makes a difference Text only is harder than text with pictures Audio of text easier to understand for users Videos and multimedia increase understanding Involves multiple senses Much more information transmitted through visual demonstration Better retention of information Seeing Hearing Understanding Easy-to-Read Materials in MedlinePlus MedlinePlus points to quality resources from trusted organizations on numerous health topics The publishing organization determines if an item is “easy-to-read” The National Library of Medicine and MedlinePlus do not make judgments as to reading levels Thus, “easy-to-read” materials in MedlinePlus range in readability levels Navigating to Easy-to-Read Materials The Health Topics page has a link to all Easy-to-Read materials currently available Finding All Easy-to-Read Materials On main Health Topics Page: Links to all Easy-to-Read and Interactive Tutorials Collection of Easy-to-Read Content Individual Health Topic Pages Look for Easy-to-Read designation Interactive Tutorials in MedlinePlus Over 165 tutorials on Diseases, Tests, Surgeries and much more Design of Interactive Tutorials Easy to navigate Multimedia design helps users understand Short text content with audio on each slide Good illustrations, some with animation Quizzes help users check understanding Good way to augment your circulating collection of videos and dvds Users may need help getting started Starting the Tutorial Click here to start Summary for Printing Influenza - Interactive Tutorial Summary Page Some of the summaries are easier than others, depending on medical terminology and nature of the topic Surgery Videos I’m having knee replacement surgery – what can I expect? Currently, 15 videos on different knee surgeries Transcripts available for printing From MedlinePlus.gov homepage, click here NIDDK Easy-to-Read Publications National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases http://diabetes.niddk.nih.gov/ NIH Publications Advanced Search in Google publications “easy to read” site:nih.gov Useful Tools: Guidelines for Writing Materials “I’ll know it when I see it” By learning how materials should be written, it is easier to recognize appropriate materials for your patrons. Helpful in choosing online resources Adds value to collection development efforts Guidelines for Writing Easy-to-Read Materials How to Write Easy-to-Read Health Materials On this page, you’ll find: Step-by-step guidelines Information and links to several readability assessment tools, such as SMOG and Fry Graph Links to software programs Bibliographies and additional guidelines worthy of mention Language and Culture in Your Community What are the unique characteristics in your community? Different communities, different needs inner city – minorities, low income and other vulnerable populations farming community – rural, large immigrant population ethnic clusters in the community Health Information in Other Languages Issues for librarians and healthcare professionals Need to know the content before recommending Impossible to know, if you don’t speak the language Multilingual Resources in MedlinePlus Robust collection of Spanish language materials Recent addition of materials in 40 languages Collection is small but growing Follow same quality guidelines To be included in Multiple Languages collection, English translation is required Languages content is available from Home Page and individual Health Topic pages Scenario Library user: “My father may need an angioplasty. He doesn’t read English well; do you have any information in Arabic?” General Search Strategies in MedlinePlus 2 3 1 Other Languages on Health Topic Pages Other Languages on Health Topics – cont. Advanced Searching with Key Words Consumer Health Manual from NN/LM nnlm.gov/outreach/consumer/ Health Information in Many Languages Health Information in Many Languages: A Few Resources Worthy of Mention Polyglot Multimedia Medical Spanish Translator Includes audio files so you can hear the translations polyglot.topsailmultimedia.com/polyglot.html Refugee Health - Immigrant Health Includes cultural customs and beliefs regarding health issues bearspace.baylor.edu/Charles_Kemp/www/refugee_health.htm Ordering National Institute of Health Publications in Languages Other Than English Information for ordering NIH multilingual publications nnlm.gov/mcr/resources/community/multilingualNIH.html Spanish Language Translator for Health Terms Your Favorite Sources for Health Information Please share your sources for easy-to-read or multilingual health materials Online resources Publishers of print materials Health videos and DVDs Other? Determine Needs in Your Community How do you know? Education and literacy levels Languages spoken Census.gov for information on education levels, languages spoken at home, and other data at the county level American FactFinder for county profiles factfinder.census.gov/ Population and Household Economic data census.gov/population/www/popdata.html American FactFinder Education Language spoken at home Insights into Community Demographics census.gov/population/www/socdemo/lang_use.html Innovative Partnerships County extension agents they interact with farm workers could talk about use of pesticides, preventing wounds Local environmental agencies Air pollution control district can provide speakers about air quality, ozone, smoke from fires Local literacy groups Teach basic computer skills For More Information Infopeople Archived Webinars Understanding Health Literacy Communicating about Health Covers more about literacy and health literacy issues, more examples and information about problem when people can’t read or understand health information Practical guidelines for helping library users know what questions to ask and how to communicate more effectively with their healthcare providers An In-Depth Look at MedlinePlus Includes details on Spanish-language materials and all other special content Kelli Ham, MLIS, Consumer Health Coordinator [email protected] NN/LM Pacific Southwest Region UCLA Louise M. Darling Biomedical Library nnlm.gov/psr