J. A. Stewart1, L. Wood1, G. Kennedy1, D. Chu1, J. Wiener1, M. Morris1 1University Of Alabama at Birmingham,Birmingham, Alabama, USA
Introduction:
Informed consent forms for surgery often consist of large blocks of written information that may be difficult for patients to understand. There is little research assessing how well patients understand this information and how it may be improved. We pilot tested a simplified, visual teaching aid for patients undergoing a colectomy to compare to the current standard of care.
Methods:
Patients needing a colectomy were approached in surgical clinics at UAB. After agreeing to participate, they were randomized into either the visual teaching aid group or standard care. The visual aid group received the visual tool in addition to the standard care consent form. Following the consent process, patients were approached by a blinded member of the research team. They were then asked about overall satisfaction, anxiety levels (paired t-test), self-reported understanding (Kruskal-Wallis test), and recall (Wilcoxon test) by asking them to repeat the three major complications of the procedure (bleeding, infection, and anastomotic leakage). All tests were performed at an alpha level of 0.05.
Results:
A total of 27 participants were enrolled and randomized: 13 visual aid group and 14 standard care. Anxiety levels were decreased after consenting for each group but were only reduced to a statistically significant amount in the visual group (p=0.31 vs. p=0.02). Patient-reported understanding of the procedure was significantly improved for the visual group (p=0.03). Total points measured for recall of the three potential complications also significantly favored the visual group over standard care (p=0.02).
Conclusion:
Visual teaching aids reduce patient anxiety levels and increase their understanding of the risks of a colectomy. Continued research will examine this with a larger sample size as well as with other surgical procedures given our positive preliminary findings.