Information therapy answers the Institute of Medicine's harsh report.

Information therapy is the prescription of specific information to a specific person at a specific time to help with a health decision. Correctly prescribed, information becomes medicine--powerful medicine. Information therapy can be as important to a patient's health as any drug, medical test, or surgery. Physicians value the information and advice they give to patients as their most important service, yet the way they perform that service hasn't changed for a hundred years. Doctors still rely chiefly on their clinical experience, their memory, and the spoken word to convey essential information to patients. When patients misunderstand, ignore, or forget the information, this vital service is wasted.