Abstract Body: Background: The American Stroke Association developed a series of pamphlets aimed at educating patients and families about strokes (https://www.stroke.org/en/professionals/stroke-resource-library), and these materials are often used by healthcare professionals to help communicate critical information about strokes. The effectiveness of these pamphlets depends on the readability of the content. Given that the average American is able to comfortably read at an eighth-grade level or below, it is essential to assess whether these materials are appropriately tailored to meet the needs of the general public.
Methods: This study evaluated 50 stroke-related pamphlets available in the PDF format from the American Stroke Association website, which fell into one of three categories: prevention, acute treatment, and post-stroke care. The text from each pamphlet was analyzed using the Gunning Fog index and Flesch-Kincaid Ease and Grade level programs. All of the values for each of the PDF were recorded in an excel sheet for further data analysis.
Results: The average Gunning Fog Index was 13.1 ± 4.0 (SD) (equivalent to at least some college level education) and the average Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level was 10.1 ± 3.8 (SD) (equivalent to around a 10th grade education). To meet the readability standards appropriate for an 8th grade education level or below, target scores should be below 8.5 for Gunning Fog Index and 8.5 for Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level.
Conclusion:
The patient education materials analyzed in this study were equivalent to 10th and 13th grade reading level. These findings highlight the need for improving the readability of patient education resources by adjusting language and explanations to lower education levels.
Keywords: stroke, readability, health literacy, patient education