Highlights

Each Speaking Books can reach as many as 50 people

A Ugandan study found that while each book was directly accessed by 200 individuals, overall ~11,000 people in the community were exposed to it .

Speaking Books are easy to understand

Among 95 students, ages 12-18, who received the “Suicide Shouldn’t be a Secret” Speaking Book, 82.1% reported that they found the book easy to understand.

Among 213 care workers working with HIV/AIDS patients, 98% reported that the book was easy to understand and 94% reported that it made it much easier to speak with patients about abstract issues such as depression.

South African home based caregivers noted that accessibility of culturally relevant language and expression enhanced the ease with which patients were able to comprehend the content.

Speaking Books allow for better dissemination of information

In a Swedish study conducted on Clinical Trials Speaking Books, it was found that the group of people who used the Speaking Books for a week had significantly improved knowledge of what is involved in participation in a clinical trial than the group exposed to a standard informed consent discussion.

UNESCO has identified Speaking Books as a useful training and learning support tool.

In a study evaluating “Making Mental Health Matter” Speaking Book in rural South Africa, of 7530 HIV/AIDS patients, 70% reported the books to contain useful information and 60% were engaged and enjoyed the speaking function.

Among 95 students, ages 12-18, who received the “Suicide Shouldn’t be a Secret” speaking book, 82.1% reported that they found the book easy to understand and test scores increased by 58% before and after usage suggesting the Speaking Books have a positive impact on the student’s knowledge of critical information.

A study in the Journal of Medical Ethics found the Clinical Trials Speaking Books easy to use and reported a statistically significant positive increase in knowledge of clinical trials among the intervention group.