Can You Understand Your Medical Test Results?
A new law requires all medical test results to be available to patients electronically as soon as they’re ready. While this sounds great, it presents a challenge: many medical reports aren’t written with patients in mind.
Imagine receiving your prostate biopsy results online. Would you understand them? A recent study published in JAMA suggests that most people wouldn’t.
Dr. Cathryn Lapedis, from the Department of Pathology at University of Michigan Health, explains, “A standard pathology report is written by a pathologist for a clinical specialist like a surgeon or a cancer doctor, or for other pathologists to read. They’re not written for patients.”
Patient-Centered Reports: Making Medical Information Clear
Dr. Lapedis and her colleagues designed a patient-centered pathology report, specifically tailored to be easily understood by patients. Instead of using complex medical jargon, this report uses plain language to explain diagnoses and risks.
For example, a standard report might use the term “prostatic adenocarcinoma,” while a patient-centered report would simply say “prostate cancer.”
Study Findings: Understanding Matters
The researchers tested the effectiveness of both standard and patient-centered reports with 2,238 adults. Participants were presented with a hypothetical scenario involving a prostate biopsy and received one of three types of reports: a standard university report, a standard VA report, or a patient-centered report.
They found that:
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Only 39% of participants reviewing the standard university report correctly identified that the report showed cancer.
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93% of participants reviewing the patient-centered report correctly identified cancer.
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Participants’ worry levels were more closely aligned with their actual risk levels when reading the patient-centered report.
Dr. Lapedis emphasizes, “Until patient-centered reports become the standard, my advice to patients is to talk with their clinicians about what words to look for in their reports even before having the test.”
Want to Understand Your Medical Results?
Talk to your doctor about the best way to understand your medical reports. Ask for clarification if anything is unclear. You have the right to understand your health information!