Patient education in the developing world--a discipline comes of age

To review evaluated studies of health education within health facilities in developing countries.

Extensive searchers were carried out of electronic databases and other sources to identify published evaluations of heath education within health service settings in developing countries. Those reports providing evidence of impact were selected for further consideration and included in the review.

Examples of successful practice are presented for a wide range of health topics that include family health, antenatal care, nutrition education, reduction of use of injections, improve adherence to regimes for antibiotics and other, prevention and control of parasitic and infectious diseases, reproductive health including AIDS and sexually transmitted diseases.

There are now many examples of effective patient education within the challenging situations found in the developing world.

Strategies adopted by successful patient education programmes are listed including initial needs research, training of staff in communication skills, cultural sensitivity, including family members, using lay volunteers, development of improved packaging for medicines, clear written instructions with simple (and pre-tested) pictorial advice, participatory learning methods, and patient self-help groups, mail reminders and reminder stickers, practical demonstrations and more effective use of waiting areas including use of video.