Multimedia presentation improves patient understanding before cataract surgery
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Patients who viewed a multimedia presentation before cataract surgery demonstrated better understanding of the condition and procedure than those who did not view the presentation, according to a speaker at the virtual Wills Eye Conference.
“[A] low level of understanding of cataract surgery is associated with patient dissatisfaction and anxiety as well as poor adherence to perioperative instruction. Effective strategies for education are essential to developing patient autonomy and decision-making,” Kyle McKey, MD, said.
To assess the effectiveness of a multimedia strategy, McKey and colleagues conducted a randomized prospective study among 85 patients who underwent cataract evaluation and subsequently scheduled cataract surgery at Wills Eye Hospital. Health literacy of all patients was assessed with the Rapid Estimate of Adult Literacy in Medicine.
The 39 patients in the intervention group watched a 5-minute multimedia presentation during which McKey explained cataracts and cataract surgery. All patients completed a 14-item questionnaire to assess their knowledge, with patients in the intervention group answering additional questions regarding their satisfaction with the video. Patients who watched the presentation were 5.6 times more likely to answer six or more questions correctly than patients in the control group.
Medical literacy also differed between the groups, according to McKey. Forty percent of patients who did not watch the presentation answered six or more health literacy questions correctly vs. 93.8% of patients who did watch the presentation, he said.
An ordinal regression analysis found an association between patient satisfaction and understanding. McKey said patients who did not view the presentation “were 3.89 times more likely to be 1 unit more dissatisfied in understanding what a cataract is and 3.19 times more likely to be 1 unit dissatisfied in feeling well-informed about their cataract surgery.”
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McKey K, et al. Quality patient encounters: Optimizing patient understanding and satisfaction through the use of multimedia. Presented at: Wills Eye Conference; March 12, 2021 (virtual meeting).
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