Specifications for Patient Safety Publications

AHRQ Publishing and Communications Guideline

Ink Colors

Patient Safety publications may print in one, two, or in full process color. Fact sheets, report covers, and two-color marketing materials print in Pantone 3135 (blue) and black ink, with a 20-percent screen of black (gray) serving as a third color.

Consumer publications print in full process color. Related marketing materials, as well as some materials for clinicians, may also print in full process color. For consumer publications, use the full process equivalent of Pantone 320 (blue) as the common color. A 40-percent screen of Pantone 320 is often used on the cover grid pattern with a 20-percent screen for the lines. Any other colors may be used in conjunction with Pantone 320 as a complement.

If designing materials for TeamSTEPPS® or another existing series, please work with a managing editor to obtain detailed specifications.

Sample two-color products

Sample full process color products

Bleed

Inks may bleed off all four edges.

Design Elements

Patient Safety grid pattern: The grid pattern should be incorporated into all Patient Safety publications. On report covers and fact sheets, the size of the squares should be approximately .25 inches and the lines should be one point in weight. On report covers and fact sheets, the grid lines print at 20 percent lighter than the background color. For consumer publications, the squares and lines may be larger or smaller than .25 inches, and the colors can vary. See below for a sample grid pattern from a report cover. Also, see page 1 for sample designs using the grid pattern.

Sample grid pattern

Arrow with grid: The arrow and grid within a circle should be used as a design element on report covers and fact sheets. It can be used on consumer publications as a design element but is not required. The arrow, grid, and circle have been created as a gray-scale Adobe Photoshop image and print in black ink only. If you re-create the arrow, grid, and circle as vector images, they should print at a 40-percent screen of black. See page 1 for sample designs using the arrow, grid, and circle elements.

Sample arrow

Photos

Photos may be used where appropriate and should relate to the publication topic. Photos can print in full process color or black and white. Photos can bleed off the edges or can be contained within frames to accommodate the design.

Fonts

Two-color fact sheets, report covers, and marketing materials use the fonts below. Report cover titles use 60-point Futura Light. Fact sheet titles use 36-point Futura Light.

• Front cover text (reports): 60-point Futura Light.
• Front cover text (fact sheets): 36-point Futura Light.
• Body text: 12-point Times New Roman with 14-point leading.
• Level 1 heads: 15-point Futura Medium with 17-point leading.
• Level 2 heads: 13-point Futura Medium with 15-point leading.
• Run-in heads: 12-point Times New Roman bold with 15-point leading.

Bullets

Square.

Hyphenation

Should be turned off.

Sample fonts and sizes for reports and two-color products

Full process color consumer, marketing, or clinician publications use the fonts below. Please note, consumer publications may be sized 8.5 x 11 inches, 4 x 9 inches, or another size as deemed appropriate for the targeted audience. The sizes and samples below are used in the 8.5 x 11 inch sized publication. Smaller sized publications should use smaller sizes as necessary.

• Front cover text: 42-point Franklin Gothic Heavy.
• Body text: 13-point Galliard with 15-point leading.
• Level 1 heads: 16-point Futura Bold with 18-point leading.
• Level 2 heads: 13-point Futura Bold with 15-point leading.
• Run-in heads: 13-point Galliard bold with 15-point leading.
• Pull quotes: 13-point Futura Medium with 15-point leading.

Bullets

Square.

Hyphenation

Should be turned off.

Sample fonts and sizes for full process color products

Branding

HHS and AHRQ branding logos must be placed at the bottom of the front cover. The HHS/AHRQ logos must not be stretched, cropped, or modified in any way. The branding logo should fit proportionally with the design elements on the front cover. Use black or white (reversed out) for color. A sample is shown below.

Front cover branding logo

AHRQ logo, publication number, and date must appear at bottom of back cover.

All AHRQ publications being printed for distribution from the AHRQ Clearinghouse must bear an AHRQ publication number and a date. These items normally appear at the bottom of cover four or on the last page of fact sheets and marketing materials. The AHRQ logo and publication number may be flush right or left depending on the design. The AHRQ editor will provide publication numbers to contractors. A sample of a flush left back cover is shown below.

Back cover logo

Submitting Files to AHRQ

For draft materials going to AHRQ for content review or layout, provide Word® 2007 documents (do not provide PDF files).

For print-ready proofs to go to the Government Printing Office (GPO), provide AHRQ source files in Quark Xpress or Adobe InDesign. Include fonts, logos, and any picture files (TIFs, EPS, or JPGs) with the source files.

In addition to the electronic files, a full-size color printout of each page including bleeds and crop marks and a folding dummy are required.

GPO also requires that a completed Form 952 accompany print files. This form is downloadable from the GPO Web site at http://www.gpo.gov

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