B B Ott1, T L Hardie. 1. Villanova University, College of Nursing, PA 19085, USA.
Abstract
PURPOSE: To assess the readability of advance directive documents. DESIGN: Descriptive. SAMPLE: Convenience, 10 advance directive documents from various sources. METHODS: Advance directive documents were electronically scanned in 1994 then evaluated using three readability formulas: Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level, Flesch Reading Score, and Gunning's Fog Index. FINDINGS: The average readability (in school grade levels) of the 10 documents was 11.3 using the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level and 18.2 using the Gunning's Fog Index. CONCLUSIONS: All documents were above reading levels usually recommended for patients. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: Patients must be able to read and understand advance directive documents before signing them. Refinement of the documents is recommended to support patient understanding and autonomy in end-of-life care.
PURPOSE: To assess the readability of advance directive documents. DESIGN: Descriptive. SAMPLE: Convenience, 10 advance directive documents from various sources. METHODS: Advance directive documents were electronically scanned in 1994 then evaluated using three readability formulas: Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level, Flesch Reading Score, and Gunning's Fog Index. FINDINGS: The average readability (in school grade levels) of the 10 documents was 11.3 using the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level and 18.2 using the Gunning's Fog Index. CONCLUSIONS: All documents were above reading levels usually recommended for patients. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: Patients must be able to read and understand advance directive documents before signing them. Refinement of the documents is recommended to support patient understanding and autonomy in end-of-life care.
Entities:
Keywords:
Death and Euthanasia; Empirical Approach
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