Information Therapy (Ix) and Information Prescription: A Systematic Review

Abstract

To systematically review the observational and control trial evidence on information prescription and information therapy. The Cochrane Library and the medical databases of MEDLINE (1946 to10 April, 2012), and EMBASE (1974 to10 April, 2012) were searched with Ovid SP. The authors included only those studies that are related to the prescription of specific health information for specific patient as a complementary medicine. Therefore, they excluded the traditional patient education studies that are based on background information rather than being foreground, evidence- based and decision focused. The authors identified 232 papers and based on the criteria 34 full texts were screened and finally 18 were reviewed in this study systematically. Six papers were randomized control trials (RCTs) and 12 were observation studies. Most of the studies focused on satisfaction and knowledge as their primary outcomes. None of the studies examined the side effects of information intervention. Only one study focused on the health related primary outcomes and showed no significant change in pain and bowl movement (BMs) among children. This review found considerable research gaps in the study of information prescription outcomes. There is need for cohort studies and RCTs with rigorous control of confounding factors to figure out the impact of information prescription and information therapy on patient care.