Barriers to patient education in Iran: A systematic review

Background: Patient education (PE) is a fundamental patient right and an essential tool for improving health outcomes and enhancing patient satisfaction. However, barriers to effective PE exist, and understanding these obstacles is crucial for addressing them. Objectives: This study aimed to conduct a systematic review of the barriers to PE in Iran. Methods: A systematic review was conducted to analyze published articles on the barriers to PE in Iran, available in both English and Persian. The search was performed across multiple databases, including PubMed, Science Direct, and ProQuest, and academic search engine of Google Scholar, and Iranian databases such as MagIran, SID, IranDoc, and IranMedex, covering the period from January 1, 2000, to January 1, 2022. Specific keywords such as "barrier", "education", "learning", "client", "Iran" and "patient" were employed, resulting in a total of 185 articles related to the topic. Ultimately, 47 studies were included in the review. Results: The review encompassed 47 studies, comprising 32 descriptive, 9 qualitative, 3 intervention, and 3 review studies. The findings identified five categories of barriers: environmental barriers, nurse-related barriers, patient-related barriers, managerial barriers, and educational barriers removal. Conclusion: Educating patients presents challenges due to various barriers. To address these obstacles, it is imperative for managers to support nurses by providing necessary resources, adequate funding, dedicated nursing personnel, suitable infrastructure, and training in innovative teaching techniques.