english.prescrire.org > Spotlight > Archives : 2009 > Prescrire's "Fiches Infos-Patients": reliable information for patients

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Prescrire's "Fiches Infos-Patients": reliable information for patients

Reliable, independently produced and regularly updated, Prescrire's new patient-information feature will help subscribers to get patients actively involved in decisions concerning their care.

Prescrire has introduced a new monthly feature called "Fiches Infos-Patients", with information specifically tailored for patients. These one-page documents are designed to provide healthcare professionals who subscribe to Prescrire with information that can be readily understood by the majority of patients, and which is reliable, regularly updated and of course free from any conflicts of interest.

When it comes to information on health, the four key quality criteria for patient information are the same as for any other type of information: independence from various economic and societal influences (industry, institutions, various interest groups); thoroughness and quality of documentary research; comprehensiveness (including comparisons between different treatment options and consideration of the adverse effects of the proposed tests or treatment); and regular updates. The presentation should represent the best possible compromise between precision and clarity, and be understandable to as many people as possible.

One of Prescrire's first "Fiches Infos-Patients" is entitled "Paracetamol: the best option for pain or fever in children", and 15 additional subjects are available to subscribers of the French journal on the prescrire.org website. The "Fiches Infos-Patients" can be downloaded by Prescrire subscribers, who are mainly healthcare professionals, and printed out for distribution to patients as an adjunct to information provided in consultation.

> Click here for the list of Prescrire's  "Fiches Infos-Patients" (in French, available online to subscribers of the French review Prescrire).

©Prescrire Novembre 2009

Source: "Infos-Patients Prescrire, Des fiches à partager avec les patients" Rev Prescrire 2009; 29 (312): 775.