Adult
Conditions
Keywords
patient education, Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice, comprehension, consumer health information
Brief summary
The purpose of this randomised controlled trial is to compare a new standardised summary format for presentation of synthesised evidence from systematic reviews for the public (a new plain language summary format) to the current format used in Cochrane systematic reviews. The study will evaluate if the new presentation improves understanding about the benefits and harms of an intervention, if it improves the accessibility of the information, and if it is preferred over other versions by the public over the current format.
Interventions
OTHERNew plain language summary format
New plain language summary includes qualitative and quantitative description of text (absolute effects and natural frequencies provided); quantitative results provided in a table; quality of the evidence according to GRADE provided in a table; question and answer format; follows principles of linguistic frameworks (e.g. progressive movements from introduction to 'bottom line')
OTHERCurrent plain language summary format
Current plain language summary includes qualitative description of effects only; inconsistent description of the quality of the evidence; paragraph of text; inconsistent flow of information
Sponsors
McMaster University
University of Ottawa
Asociacion Colaboracion Cochrane Iberoamericana
University of Milan
Norwegian Knowledge Centre for the Health Services
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Masking
QUADRUPLE (Subject, Caregiver, Investigator, Outcomes Assessor)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
16 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
* patients or members of the public 16 years or older
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Understanding of benefits and harms | After reading summary - time 0 | Average proportion of people who answered 5 multiple choice questions correctly. Each question includes five response options about the number of people who could benefit or be harmed by the intervention and about the quality of evidence |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Number of questions answered correctly | After reading summary - time 0 | Total number of questions out of five questions for benefits and harms that were answered correctly |
Other
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Understanding of the purpose of the summary | after reading summary - time 0 | A multiple choice question with three options |
| Understanding the producer of the summary | after reading summary - time 0 | A multiple choice question with three options |
| Usability and accessibility | after reading summary - time 0 | Five questions about whether information was easy to find and understand, reliable, and useful to someone making a decision. Measured using a 7 point Likert scale (strongly agree to strongly disagree). |
| Preference for the new format or the old format | after reading both summaries - time 0 | 7 point likert scale |
Countries
Argentina, Canada, Italy, Norway, Spain
Outcome results
None listed