Development of Patient Education Materials for Total Joint Replacement During an International Surgical Brigade

Abstract

Background: Temporary brigade trips to deliver international surgical care are increasingly common. For the purposes of this work, we use the term brigade to describe self-contained short-term medical or surgical mission trips where healthcare professionals are brought in from foreign regions to provide care to an underserved population. Many brigade programs have begun to collect and publish data on outcomes and complications, but few have examined their own patient education practices. Methods: We used evidence-based readability and suitability analyses along with patient interviews to develop improved patient education materials for a total joint replacement surgical brigade in the Dominican Republic. Results: Existing patient education materials required an eighth grade reading level and lacked suitability based on the principles of educational theory. The redesigned materials required fifth grade reading skills or less and had superior suitability. Pilot testing with patients from the target population suggested that the materials were appealing and appropriate. Conclusions: Patient education may play an important role in optimizing outcomes in the setting of medical or surgical brigades where resources and access to follow-up care are limited. More research is needed to bring attention to the importance of patient education during brigades, and programs should work with patients to develop educational materials that are suitable and effective.

Construction and evaluation of a serial album for the prevention of foot complications in diabetics

“…No desenvolvimento de um instrumento educacional, é importante que seja avaliado se esse possui uma metodologia que atinja seu objetivo de forma clara e confiável (17) . No presente estudo, o IVC geral do álbum foi de 0,90 e o IVC das figuras (0,95) e fichas--roteiro (0,84) foi maior que o preconizado (14) . Na avaliação individual, uma ficha-roteiro apresentou IVC inferior a 0,80 e, com isso, foi retirada, sem nenhum prejuízo da validação do álbum por parte da análise dos juízes.…”

“…O resultado do SAM varia de 0 a 100% de adequabilidade. Se o ma-terial atingir de 0 a 39% é considerado inadequado; de 40 a 69%, adequado e se alcançar de 70 a 100% dos escores será considerado material educativo superior (14) .…”

Pearls and Pitfalls of an Orthopaedic Mission Trip

“…This program saw a follow-up rate of 81.9% and had an annual cost of $20,041 USD. 9 Finally, many of the cases are complex in nature. Lack of medical care and surgical intervention lend to severe disease progression and, oftentimes, abnormal anatomy.…”

“…Some things may be common sense, such as creating patient education materials that caters to the reading and education level of the target audience. 9 Similarly, collaboration with the local medical teams can decrease complications and increase patient satisfaction. 10 This may include follow-up visits with patients through telehealth scheduling in accordance with local medical staff.…”

“…9 Finally, many of the cases are complex in nature. Lack of medical care and surgical intervention lend to severe disease progression and, oftentimes, abnormal anatomy.…”