Plain language summaries for effective dissemination and stakeholder communication

USE CASE #3

Increase stakeholder engagement with Plain Language Summaries

Create plain language summaries of studies and reports to educate and inform stakeholders.

EFSA case study

Communicating complex scientific details effectively to multiple stakeholders is a challenge that plain language summaries (PLS) can address. PLS are ideal for pan-European organisations, like the European Food Standard Authority, or research-intensive corporates like pharmaceutical companies, which are mandated to provide a PLS for each clinical study for innovative medicine’s approval submitted to the European Medicines’ Agency (EMA). PLS can also be used by pharma companies for patient information and recruitment during clinical trials for new medicines.

Highlights

Client Profile

Pharmaceutical companies or Pan-European regulatory organisations, such as the European Food Standard Authority (EFSA), for stakeholder communication.
Location

Worldwide.
Service Type

Creation of plain language summaries (PLS) in large numbers.
Duration

PLS packages cover 12 months of PLS dissemination campaigns.
Client Name

EFSA, Global Pharma companies.
Key Challenges

Communicating complex scientific or medical information in a concise and easy-to-understand manner for time-poor and variety of stakeholders.
Content Solution

Creation of templated PLS in line with ISO standards ISO/DIS 24495-1(en).

Outcome

• Increased dissemination of scientific information to wider and non-specialist audiences.

• Reduced reading time to access relevant information by 90%.

• Compliance with information, communications and regulatory requirements.

• Increased impact of scientific evidence, results and innovations through a boost in audience levels.

• Fulfilled pharma mandatory obligation to create PLS for lay audiences under EMA requirements.

• Assist clinical trial patient recruitment by providing easy-to-understand explainer PLS.

Features

• PLS are structured summaries, providing a concise and easy-to-understand overview of key information in a complex scientific or technical document.

• PLS are available in templated formats ranging from 250 words for a lay audience to 1,000-1,500 words for stakeholders with some prior knowledge of subject matter.

Benefits

• 90% time-savings in reaching relevant information for stakeholders (e.g. reading time for a 200-page document down to a 2-page PLS).

• Ability to reach, inform and educate new and more varied audiences with appropriate content derived from complex scientific and medical material (e.g. clinical trial patients, lay public).

Problem

Stakeholder audiences are suffering from information overload. And despite a need to make informed decisions related to complex scientific or medical matters, they do not have time to read the dense and complex available evidence. At the same time, organisations and institutions have a need and often a duty to inform a variety of stakeholders.

SciencePOD solution

Plain language summaries (PLS) designed for specified audiences increase our client’s ability to disseminate important scientific and medical evidence and comply with best practices, regulations and mandates.

Bespoke templates and modular content assets ensure consistency, compliance and speed in the creation of PLS, making them readily available to inform stakeholders decision making. Option to partially automate production with AI-Hybrid content, where a first draft is generated by AI tools and then complemented by quality checks from a human editor with subject-matter expertise.

Summary

SciencePOD-created plain language summaries allow our clients to appropriately communicate complex scientific evidence to their stakeholders and reach and inform wider audiences, thereby empowering stakeholder well-informed decision-making.

USE CASE #3

Increase stakeholder engagement with Plain Language Summaries

Highlights

Client Profile

Location

Service Type

Duration

Client Name

Key Challenges