Writing patient content
Voice, tone and word choices for hospital authors writing EDFlow patient content (education sheets, going-home templates, FAQ, announcements), with French typography rules and the words never to use.
Everything a hospital writes for patients in EDFlow (education sheets, going-home templates, task templates, FAQ, hospital information, announcements) goes through clinical review. Writing it well first makes review faster.
Principles
| Principle | Write | Don't write |
|---|---|---|
| Calm | "Your blood work is in the lab." | "Tests pending!!" |
| Clear (grade 6 to 8) | "A CT scan is a detailed X-ray." | "CT w/ contrast ordered, pending protocol." |
| Honest about uncertainty | "Usually 30 to 55 minutes at this time on a Tuesday." | "Results in 30 minutes." |
| Kind, never blaming | "Thank you for your patience. The department is very busy tonight." | "Waits are longer due to non-urgent visits." |
| Actionable | "Give a urine sample when you can. Ask your nurse for a cup." | "Urinalysis required." |
| Brief | One idea per sentence. Put the answer first. | "Please be advised that…" |
For patients
- Second person, present tense, active voice.
- Explain a medical word in brackets the first time it appears.
- No exclamation marks (except a genuine welcome) and no emoji.
- Never say or interpret results. Say they're back and who will explain them.
- Every sheet ends with the reminder that it doesn't replace talking with the care team.
For family
Even shorter. The step, a rough wait, first names and roles at most. Never tests, results or clinical detail.
Word list
| Use | Avoid |
|---|---|
| doctor (physicians only); nurse practitioner; physician assistant | MD, provider; "doctor" for someone who isn't a physician |
| care team | treatment team |
| test, blood work, scan | investigation, labs |
| results are back | results are complete, final, normal, fine |
| usually; most people (9 in 10) within | guaranteed, expected by, at the longest, up to, you're next, average |
| waiting room, your spot | bay, pod, zone codes |
| going home | dispo, D/C |
| request, ask for | ticket, order |
The admin's content editor warns on banned words and shows a reading-level score.
French
- Canadian French, written by a human translator and reviewed clinically. Machine drafts are never published unreviewed.
- Inclusive forms that stay readable: « une infirmière ou un infirmier », « l'équipe de soins ». Avoid the median dot in patient text: screen readers stumble on it.
- Times
14 h 30; durations20 à 40 min; numbers1 250,5with a narrow no-break space. - A no-break space before
:and inside « guillemets »; no space before;,!or?. - Sentence case for titles.
- Plan for French running 20 to 30% longer than English.
Sensitive moments
For delays, "I feel worse", results back, a busy department, paused updates and offline states, use the product's own canonical wording. Don't write your own versions. See Safety.
Related
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