INTRALINGUAL TRANSLATION AS A CONTRIBUTION TO INCREASING THE COMPREHENSIBILITY OF MEDICATION PACKAGE INSERTS

Abstract

Patient information leaflets (PILs) for medicinal products are a crucial source of information for the public. Their primary purpose is to provide users with clear, accurate, and understandable guidance on the correct use of medicines, including dosage, potential side effects, interactions, and contraindications. However, in practice, the content of many PILs remains linguistically complex, cognitively demanding, and therefore often inaccessible to lay readers. This gap between expert language and user comprehension can lead to confusion, medication misuse, and, ultimately, risks to patient health and safety. This paper explores the challenges of comprehensibility, readability, and information processing in PILs. It focuses on intralingual translation, the reformulation of specialized or technical language into a more accessible version within the same language, as a potential strategy for improving patient understanding. The aim is not only to simplify vocabulary or shorten sentences but to ensure that the information is structured, framed, and presented in a way that aligns with the cognitive and linguistic capacities of diverse audiences. The paper argues for greater involvement of linguists, translators, and communication experts in the creation and revision of PILs. Enhancing the clarity of health communication is essential for promoting health literacy, encouraging informed decision-making, and supporting safe and responsible self-medication practices.