The average person remembers less than half of the information provided by healthcare professionals during a medical visit. The situation is arguably most challenging for patients leaving the hospital, where acute illness, sleep deprivation and delirium add to the challenge of learning and memory. Indeed, research has shown that after hospital discharge, only 59.6% of patients are able to accurately describe their discharge diagnoses, and 43.9% can accurately recall follow-up appointments. Approximately one-third of patients have difficulty understanding their discharge medication regimen.

It is not the patients' fault. Hospital resources and processes of care are oriented toward acute treatment. They are not as well designed to provide high-quality patient education in the hospital and across the transition home.

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