Suggestions from IC template guidance

Eliminate the technical jargon

The Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center IRB and a special task force developed guidance and a template for improving and simplifying informed consent forms. Among the guidance’s suggestions are these tips for making an IC form more readable:

• Write the consent document to a sixth-to-eighth-grade reading level.

• Use Arial, Calibri, or other plain font in 11 point or larger size.

• Use underline, bold, or boxes to emphasize important points. Do not use italics or all caps.

• Have a clear page layout with a lot of white space.

• Use page numbers, bullets, graphics, tables, and flow charts.

• Avoid technical, medical, legal jargon.

• Spell out acronyms and abbreviations the first time they are used.

• Be consistent with words and terminology throughout the document.

• Keep words to three syllables or fewer and write short, simple, direct sentences.

• Limit paragraphs to one idea and keep them short.

• Use an active voice and use second person with the pronouns "you," "we," and "I."

The template also offers examples of preferred language. Here is a sample:

• Instead of saying "trial" or "experiment," use "research study" or "project."

• Instead of using the word "randomization," say, "like flip of a coin or like drawing numbers from a hat."