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Health-related literature written at a reading level above the American Medical Association–recommended 6th-grade level is useless to many patients. Little is known about the readability and contents of nonresearch informed consent forms for procedures. Researchers evaluated a sample of these forms from 104 U.S. hospitals.
The mean reading level of the forms was 11th grade. Prevalences of selected items are as follows:
All forms included spaces for listing risks and alternatives and for patient and clinician signatures.
More than 80% included disclosures regarding benefits, assistants in the operating room (OR), and unanticipated procedures, and an affidavit that all questions were answered.
Disclosures on blood products, risks of noninterventi…