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Patient Teaching Resources

Teaching health care patients requires a high level of patience, sufficient resources and cross-cultural competency. While some methods of patient teaching are simple, inexpensive and fast, others require more time on the part of the educator. Fortunately, there are a wide variety of methods for teaching health care patients from any cultural, educational or medical background.

  1. Interactive and Media

    • Some patients prefer teaching methods that are both visual and auditory, and interactive websites as well as media such as videos and television can provide both of these. Many hospitals maintain closed-circuit television networks that are able to play on-demand videos or streaming videos on a variety of health topics. These presentations are often available in multiple languages so that a variety of patients can be taught with this method, which could decrease the need for expensive interpreter services. The National Institutes of Health offers a 24-hour-per-day audio service for medical information and patient education, which is available at no charge as it is provided by the federal government. Interactive patient teaching methods often include a quiz at the end of the program or presentation that allows the patient to self-test his knowledge about the information received. Health care providers could also use the results of this test to set the basis for further teaching of the patient.

    In Person

    • Health care providers might prefer personal, one-on-one methods of teaching patients. This method allows for individually tailored health information and advice that pertains directly to the patient. This method is especially helpful in teaching patients from different cultures who might not understand written health information. In addition, the health care provider is immediately available to explain anything confusing or go into greater detail as needed. This method of teaching might take place in person or over the phone and might include one or many teaching sessions. Personal teaching of a patient might also include the patient's family members, especially if the family will participate in care-giving activities. According to the Patient Education Institute, personalized patient education often results in increased satisfaction with health care services, greater compliance with treatment, more cost-effective care and a lower chance of malpractice claims.

    Written

    • Written materials are a common method of teaching patients. Written materials include websites as well as printed materials, including fact sheets, brochures and books. Accessing the materials might require visiting a website, requesting through email, requesting through postal service mail or visiting a medical provider and receiving the information in person. Universities such as the Oregon Health & Science University offer written articles online on thousands of medical and health topics. In addition, written advice for medical providers who spend time educating patients is available. Websites such as MayoClinic.com offer online materials for teaching patients; these materials are accessible 24 hours per day, seven days per week, at no charge to the health care provider or the patient. Health care providers might also consider emailing their patients as part of their teaching methods; MedlinePlus offers an email to a friend feature that allows the provider to share the link or the contents of an entire page through email.

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