Year: 2026 | Month: August | Volume: 13 | Issue: 8 | Pages: 478-491
DOI: https://doi.org/10.52403/ijrr.20260850
Medical Illustrations, Patient Education Materials, and Health Literacy in Late Adolescents
Lola W. Huang
Conestoga Senior High School, Berwyn, United States of America.
ABSTRACT
The purpose of the study was to evaluate how patient education materials should be illustrated in order to improve comprehension, a foundational component of health literacy, among late adolescents in Pennsylvania. Despite plentiful research on the effects of patient education materials and health literacy in adults, there exists a gap in research concerning late adolescent health literacy, medical illustration, and patient education materials. As a vulnerable demographic, it is pertinent that late adolescents exhibit sufficient levels of health literacy to be able to navigate complicated healthcare systems and maintain wellbeing. This study utilized an experimental method in which participants were presented with different styles of medical illustrations or no illustration at all and were later evaluated for their comprehension of the patient education material. Ultimately, the difference in scores on the comprehension assessment was not statistically significant, indicating no notable difference in comprehension between the presence and style of medical illustration among late adolescents in Pennsylvania. However, the study contained several limitations, including a relatively small sample size that lacked diversity. Given the potential applications for similar research, it is recommended that this study be repeated with an expanded range of topics and styles of medical illustration, as well as a more diverse sample of participants.
Keywords: health literacy, patient education materials, adolescent health, medical illustrations
[PDF Full Text]