Modernising patient education in vitreoretinal surgery

Poor literacy is a major barrier to effective healthcare communication, with one in six people in the UK affected [ 1 ]. In Liverpool, literacy vulnerability is among the highest in the North West of England [ 2 , 3 ]. At the same time, social media has shaped patient preferences, with images and videos now the preferred modes of learning and engagement. Traditional, text-heavy patient education materials risk leaving many patients behind. In vitreoretinal surgery, this gap has significant clinical consequences. Patients often struggle to understand written postoperative instructions or read small print, particularly those relating to postoperative posturing. Poor adherence can compromise surgical success and lead to poorer visual outcomes [ 4 , 5 ].