Readability formulas: are they enough?

Abstract

Because of FDA requirements concerning patient package inserts and growing awareness of the need for patient education, pharmacists and other health care practitioners have become interested in assessing the readability of written information intended for patients. Readability formulas have seemingly furnished a quick and easy answer. However, users of readability formulas should be aware of their limitations. Several of these limitations are presented, along with suggestions for overcoming them. This approach will enable pharmacists and other health care practitioners to become more sophisticated in assessing the readability of various documents and ultimately to produce readable documents.