Video Discharge Instructions Increase Understanding
By Katie Wike, contributing writer
Study shows patients understand and retain more information when viewing video discharge instructions when compared to verbal instructions only
A study by the National Institutes of Health, published on the National Center for Biotechnology Information website, found “patients who viewed an online video of their discharge instructions scored higher on their understanding of key concepts around their diagnosis and subsequent care. Those who viewed the videos found them to be a helpful addition to standard care.”
Health IT Analytics reviewed the study and wrote, “Patients and caregivers ... are 3.5 times more likely to understand and retain the information given to them about their care than patients who are only given written instructions. Patients often remember less than half of the directions given to them during a physician visit, which can lead to medication non-compliance and quick relapses that carry stiff financial penalties for hospitals.”
The authors of the study explained their methodology, writing, “In this prospective, single-center, randomized controlled trial conducted between November 2011 and January 2012, we randomized emergency department patients who were discharged with one of 38 diagnoses to either view (after they left the emergency department) a vetted online video of diagnosis-specific discharge instructions, or to usual care. Patients were subsequently contacted by telephone and asked three standardized questions about their discharge instructions; one point was awarded for each correct answer. Using an intention-to-treat analysis, differences between groups were assessed using univariate testing, and with logistic regression that accounted for clustering on managing physician. A secondary outcome measure was patient satisfaction with the videos, on a 10-point scale.”
Health IT Analytics credits Dr. Clare Atzema of the University of Toronto with writing, “Good discharge instructions may prevent subsequent hospitalizations and lessen repeat emergency department visits in an already overwhelmed system; however, the time it takes to provide detailed discharge instructions to each and every patient seen in the emergency department may be prohibitive.” With ED over-crowding a chronic problem for the majority of healthcare organizations, “discharge instructions may be truncated in an effort to see more patients.” Physicians only spend an average of 76 seconds on post-ED directions to begin with.
“As the population ages and emergency department crowding worsens, innovations are needed to minimize the effect of crowding on time spent explaining discharge instructions to patients,” Atzema concludes. “Particularly in light of shortened doctor-patient interactions times, this tool should be offered to patients to supplement standard care.”
The study concluded, “In the emergency department setting, online videos of diagnosis-specific discharge instructions improve patient comprehension and retention of key discharge details. Particularly in light of emergency department crowding and shortened doctor-patient interactions times, this tool should be offered to patients to supplement standard care.”
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