Randomized controlled trial on the efficacy of audio-visual health educational materials on CPAP adherence: the AHEAD trial.

Study Objectives: Educational interventions have been proposed to improve continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) adherence; however, studies to date have not demonstrated robust effectiveness, due to methodological issues. Furthermore, these educational interventions have not specifically targeted low health literacy communication techniques, which have been demonstrated to improve outcomes in numerous other chronic diseases. We hypothesized that the addition of low-cost audio-visual educational videos (EVs) to usual standard-of-care (SC) education would improve CPAP adherence in adults with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) syndrome.

Health literacy assessment in the clinic: benefits, pitfalls and practicalities.

Approximately 60% of Australians have low or marginal health literacy, which is associated with poorer outcomes in patients with chronic disease. Patient-centred strategies (such as reduced medical jargon, use of pictograms, multimedia narratives) are effective in improving outcomes for many chronic diseases, with the impact being greatest in individuals with low health literacy. However, clinicians need a reliable and practical tool for assessing health literacy, the results of which help inform the choice of communication techniques best tailored to deliver information to patients.

Adequate health literacy is associated with adherence to continuous positive airway pressure in adults with obstructive sleep apnea.

Study Objectives: Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a chronic disease with significant health implications and adequate adherence to continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) is essential for effective treatment. In many chronic diseases, health literacy has been found to predict treatment adherence and outcomes. In this study, the aim was to determine the health literacy of a sleep clinic population and evaluate the association between health literacy and CPAP adherence.

Teacher-as-actor: Investigating the barriers and facilitators of patient education among hospitalized patients in a cardiology clinical unit.

Patient education enables people with cardiovascular disease to develop self-management behaviors. This study aimed to explore facilitators and barriers to teaching patients in a clinical cardiology unit with a single site qualitative investigation involving 21 registered nurses attending four focus groups. This study identified barriers related to patient factors including individual characteristics and responses to education, comorbidities, acuity, and evolving diagnosis, while for nurses the barriers were lack of knowledge and expertise.