Understanding Pharmaceutical Pictograms for Illiterate Patients
Author Information
Author(s): Yogesh Joshi, P Kothiyal
Primary Institution: Himalayan Institute of Pharmacy & Research, Rajawala, India
Hypothesis
Can pharmaceutical pictograms be effectively understood by illiterate patients?
Conclusion
Pictograms need to be developed for illiterate patients, and their understanding can be improved with verbal reinforcement.
Supporting Evidence
- Prior to explanation, only 1% of patients correctly interpreted the pictograms.
- After explanation, 9.5% of patients managed to interpret all pictograms correctly.
- Only 7.93% of patients correctly interpreted the pictograms in the follow-up study.
Takeaway
This study shows that pictures can help people who can't read understand their medicine better if someone explains them.
Methodology
The study involved 200 illiterate patients who were evaluated on their understanding of 10 pharmaceutical pictograms before and after explanations.
Limitations
Poor patient follow-up affected the results, with only 164 patients returning for follow-up interviews.
Participant Demographics
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Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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