The Partnership for Clear Health Communication

Press Release

PARTNERSHIP FOR CLEAR HEALTH COMMUNICATION
HITS 1 MILLION MARK FOR THE ASK ME 3 PROGRAM

Ask Me 3 Program is Designed to Improve Patient-Doctor Communication

WASHINGTON, D.C., June 22, 2006 — The Partnership for Clear Health Communication, the country’s leading non-profit organization dedicated to improving low health literacy, announced an important milestone for its Ask Me 3 program: more than one million of its educational brochures have been requested and distributed to physicians, hospitals and clinics, insurance providers, public libraries, corporations, and associations  across the country.  Ask Me 3, which was launched in May 2003, promotes three simple but essential questions that patients should ask their health care providers in every health care interaction:

  • What is my main problem?
  • What do I need to do?
  • Why is it important for me to do this?

“The Ask Me 3 program has provided invaluable materials and support to assist our efforts to educate physicians about health literacy, and empower patients to be able to receive clear instructions from their doctors,” said Glen Davis, M.D., Seminole County Patient Safety Initiative, which is currently utilizing Ask Me 3.  “We expect patients in Seminole County to have better health once there is widespread knowledge and use of the three simple questions."

According to the 2003 National Assessment of Adult Literacy (NAAL), 90 million consumers are impacted by low health literacy and 93 million adults can only perform basic literacy skills. Basic literacy skills are defined as having the ability to perform simple and everyday literacy activities such as using a TV guide to find out what programs are at a specific time or comparing ticket prices for two events.

“Health information is hard for everyone to understand.  The Ask Me 3 questions make it easier for patients and doctors to have a meaningful conversation about the patient’s medical condition and the doctor’s instructions,” said Anita Boles, executive director of the Partnership for Clear Health Communication. “Importantly for doctors, research with Ask Me 3 shows that the questions do not add time to the patient visit, and can reduce the number of call-backs and missed appointments by their patients.”

Ask Me 3 was developed through the generous support of Partnership for Clear Health Communication founding member Pfizer, Inc. The program consists of easy-to-read brochures and posters customized for patients, doctors, and organizations, as well as a Web site with comprehensive information and resources for people interested in health literacy and clear health communication. All the materials are available in English and Spanish and can be ordered free of charge on www.askme3.org.    

The Partnership for Clear Health Communication (PCHC) is a national, non-profit coalition working to build awareness and advance solutions to improve health literacy and positively impact health outcomes.

 For more information about PCHC visit www.p4chc.org.