Article type
Year
Abstract
Background: Well-informed healthcare decisions depend on the ability to understand information, particularly research evidence. The use of jargon can be a barrier to people’s understanding and use of evidence to inform their choices.
Objective: To create an online glossary that facilitates informed choices about treatments by promoting consistent use of plain language, providing plain language definitions and explanations of terms that people might need to understand if they wish to assess claims about treatments.
Methods: GET-IT (Glossary of Evaluation Terms for Informed Treatment choices) was developed collaboratively by the Informed Healthcare Choices project (funded by GLOBVac), Testing Treatments interactive, and the DECIDE project (funded by the EU). We screened 15 sources to identify terms, including a sample of relevant glossaries. Evaluation of the glossary includes feedback from collaborating partners, a survey of organisations that have expressed an interest in using GET-IT, user testing, and an evaluation of the impact of the glossary on users’ understanding of terms.
Results: The glossary includes over 200 terms. For each term, there is a suggested plain language term, synonyms, a short definition, a full explanation, examples, and links to additional resources. The glossary can be translated, tailored to different audiences, and embedded in other websites. Other websites can also link to definitions.
Conclusions: The GET-IT glossary is open-access, and the use of plain language facilitates understanding by a wide range of people. It is useful for people who communicate research evidence (including systematic reviewers), and who teach others about how to assess claims about treatments, in addition to those who want to make informed choices about treatments.
Objective: To create an online glossary that facilitates informed choices about treatments by promoting consistent use of plain language, providing plain language definitions and explanations of terms that people might need to understand if they wish to assess claims about treatments.
Methods: GET-IT (Glossary of Evaluation Terms for Informed Treatment choices) was developed collaboratively by the Informed Healthcare Choices project (funded by GLOBVac), Testing Treatments interactive, and the DECIDE project (funded by the EU). We screened 15 sources to identify terms, including a sample of relevant glossaries. Evaluation of the glossary includes feedback from collaborating partners, a survey of organisations that have expressed an interest in using GET-IT, user testing, and an evaluation of the impact of the glossary on users’ understanding of terms.
Results: The glossary includes over 200 terms. For each term, there is a suggested plain language term, synonyms, a short definition, a full explanation, examples, and links to additional resources. The glossary can be translated, tailored to different audiences, and embedded in other websites. Other websites can also link to definitions.
Conclusions: The GET-IT glossary is open-access, and the use of plain language facilitates understanding by a wide range of people. It is useful for people who communicate research evidence (including systematic reviewers), and who teach others about how to assess claims about treatments, in addition to those who want to make informed choices about treatments.