Commercially prepared learning and instructional materials like posters, brochures, client-focused texts and pamphlets, are normally available from vendors (Bastable, 2009 ). This means that they are shipped with the products and are meant to instruct the consumers on how to best use the product that the instructional material comes with (Bastable, 2009 ). A lot of arguments have arisen on whether these materials are effective or not; with skeptics citing bias on the raw materials that pharmaceutical companies prepare (Bastable, 2009 ). As such, nurses need to verify the information found on these instructional materials lest they mislead patients. Therefore, the use of free patient education materials that drug and formula manufacturers is not good. Some of the people who write the instructions are not even medical professionals. Hence, it is not wise to use such material.
Some of the aspects of the freely available instructional material that the nurse educators need to verify include the professionals who produced the material, availability of the preview of the item, and price of the material (Bastable, 2009 ). While these materials are free and accessible for free, nurse educators are required to research, write and copy the material in order to develop better quality informational materials (Boyd, 1987). The disadvantages of these freely available materials far outweigh their advantages and therefore they should not be used. Patients should only rely on the information that healthcare professionals like doctors and nurses to verify information.
Manufacturers of drugs and formula need to employ professionals in each of their departments; especially the one that handles the informational material it releases to its customers. Health is an important aspect of human life. Intake of wrong drugs or formula means that the well-being of a patient may be at risk and a person may lose his or her life. Free information may not be the best information. It is therefore advisable to get expert information on drugs and health matters.
- Bastable, S. (2009 ). Nurse As Educator. Sudbury, MA: Jones & Bartlett Publishing Co.
- Boyd, M. (1987). A guide to writing useful patient education materials. Nursing Management, 56-57.
