The readability of HIV/AIDS education materials

Health care providers use printed materials to educate patients and their families about their particular health condition. For the target audience to be able to read and understand health brochures, they should be written at or about the eighth-grade level and incorporate variables that facilitate comprehension. The purpose of this study was to analyze brochures related to HIV/AIDS to determine (a) if they were written at a level appropriate for the target audience and (b) the extent to which they incorporated variables identified in the research literature as facilitating comprehension. The results showed that the brochures were written beyond the reading grade level recommended for the target audience. Further, although the brochures incorporated a large number of variables that facilitate comprehension, many were not used to the extent necessary to ensure that readers would be able to read and understand them. The results indicated the need for HIV/AIDS-related health brochures to be written in such a way that they can be read and understood by the target audience.