Tony Barnett|Ha Hoang|Ashlea Furlan
An analysis of the readability characteristics of oral health information literature available to the public in Tasmania, Australia
University of Tasmania|University of Tasmania
effectiveness printbased health promotion materials dependent readability study aimed assess characteristics printbased oral health information literature publically available tasmania australia oral health education brochures collected 11 dental clinics across tasmania assessed structure format content readability reading level calculated using three widelyused measures fleschkincaid grade level fkgl flesch reading ease simple measure gobbledygook smog reading grade level fkgl 67 brochures sampled ranged grade 3 13 grade level government health department brochures n 14 ranged grade 4 11 56 18 reading levels materials produced commercial sources n 22 ranged 3 13 83 21 professional associations n 22 ranged grade 7 11 89 09 brochures produced sources n 9 ranged 5 10 76 15 smog test positively correlated fkgl rs 092 p 0001 though consistently rated materials 23 grades higher reading level required comprehend brochures published government sources average lower commercial professional sources government materials also likely contain fewer words professional jargon terms brochures sources range oral health information brochures publically available patients public private dental clinics however readability characteristics differed many brochures required reading skill level higher suited large proportion tasmanian population readability characteristics oral health education materials assessed ensure suitability use patients especially suspected low literacy skills