Abstract
BackgroundLung cancer screening can reduce mortality but can be a complex, multi-step process. Poor health literacy is associated with unfavorable outcomes and decreased use of preventative services, so it is important to address barriers to care through efficient and practical education. The readability of lung cancer screening materials for patients is unknown and may not be at the recommended 6th grade reading level set by the American Medical Association. Our goals were to: (1) measure the health literacy of a lung cancer screening population from an urban academic medical center, and (2) examine the readability of online educational materials for lung cancer screening.MethodsWe performed a retrospective cross sectional study at a single urban academic center. Health literacy was assessed using three validated screening questions. To assess the readability of educational materials, we performed a Google search using the phrase, “What is lung cancer screening?” and the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level (FKGL) formula was used to estimate the grade level required to understand the text.ResultsThere were 404 patients who underwent lung cancer screening during the study period. The prevalence of inadequate/marginal health literacy was 26.7–38.0%. Fifty websites were reviewed and four were excluded from analysis because they were intended for medical providers. The mean FKGL for the 46 websites combined was 10.6 ± 2.2.ConclusionsLow health literacy was common and is likely a barrier to appropriate education for lung cancer screening. The current online educational materials regarding lung cancer screening are written above the recommended reading level set by the American Medical Association.
Highlights
Lung cancer screening can reduce mortality but can be a complex, multi-step process
Assessment of online educational materials As a separate analysis, we evaluated the readability level of online educational materials regarding lung cancer screening available to the general population
There were 404 patients who underwent lung cancer screening during the study period, with the majority being referred by primary care physicians (74%) followed by pulmonologists (19%)
Summary
Lung cancer screening can reduce mortality but can be a complex, multi-step process. The readability of lung cancer screening materials for patients is unknown and may not be at the recommended 6th grade reading level set by the American Medical Association. Our goals were to: (1) measure the health literacy of a lung cancer screening population from an urban academic medical center, and (2) examine the readability of online educational materials for lung cancer screening. Counseling for lung cancer screening should involve a shared decision making discussion between the ordering physician and their patient [14]. The lung cancer screening process can be complex and involve several diagnostic pathways, referrals, and procedures the patient will need to consider if an
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