Evaluating the readability and suitability of construction occupational safety and health materials designed for workers.

INTRODUCTION: Printed materials for training and hazard communication are an essential part of occupational safety and health programs, but must be understood by their intended audience. METHODS: Researchers collected 103 safety training handouts, brochures, and Safety Data Sheets and scored them for readability and suitability using four standard health communication instruments: the SMOG test, the Flesch-Kincaid Reading Ease Assessment, the SAM (Suitability Assessment of Materials), and CCI (the CDC Clear Communication Index). RESULTS: Some of the materials used unfamiliar and technical terms. The SAM and CCI checklists revealed several elements of design and layout known to facilitate communication and comprehension, but missing from most of the materials scored. CONCLUSION: Occupational safety and health professionals preparing curricula and handouts for distribution to workers should incorporate some form of readability and suitability assessment to help ensure their written materials are clear and comprehensible to all segments of their audience.

"I Don't Want to Be an Ostrich": Managing Mothers' Uncertainty during BRCA1/2 Genetic Counseling.

Families who face genetic disease risk must learn how to grapple with complicated uncertainties about their health and future on a long-term basis. Women who undergo BRCA 1/2 genetic testing describe uncertainty related to personal risk as well as their loved ones', particularly daughters', risk. The genetic counseling setting is a prime opportunity for practitioners to help mothers manage uncertainty in the moment but also once they leave a session. Uncertainty Management Theory (UMT) helps to illuminate the various types of uncertainty women encounter and the important role of communication in uncertainty management. Informed by UMT, we conducted a thematic analysis of 16 genetic counseling sessions between practitioners and mothers at risk for, or carriers of, a BRCA1/2 mutation. Five themes emerged that represent communication strategies used to manage uncertainty: 1) addresses myths, misunderstandings, or misconceptions; 2) introduces uncertainty related to science; 3) encourages information seeking or sharing about family medical history; 4) reaffirms or validates previous behavior or decisions; and 5) minimizes the probability of personal risk or family members' risk. Findings illustrate the critical role of genetic counseling for families in managing emotionally challenging risk-related uncertainty. The analysis may prove beneficial to not only genetic counseling practice but generations of families at high risk for cancer who must learn strategic approaches to managing a complex web of uncertainty that can challenge them for a lifetime.