Effect of the evaluation of recall on the rate of information recalled by patients in Primary Care

Objective: To analyse whether asking the patient to restate the recommendations they receive before leaving the surgery improves the recall rate once the consultation is finished.

Methods: Observational study in 37 Primary Care Consultant (PCC) in health centres of the city of Albacete. The final sample had 963 patients.

Results: The mean rate of recommendations remembered after leaving the surgery was better in the group of patients that restated the recommendations before finishing the doctor-patient encounter than in the group where there was no restatement (p = 0.000). The amount of recommendations showed a negative correlation with the recall rate (r = -0.215).

Conclusion: Asking patients to repeat treatment recommendations is an effective method of improving the recall of these prescriptions at the end of doctor-patient encounter.

Practical implications: The importance of communication between health-care professionals and patients justifies the performance of studies so that it can be improved and, according to the results of this study, it would be advisable to use the method proposed on a more regular basis by the PCC as a way of improving communication and recall of medical advice.