News > Shared decision making

Updated Cochrane review on Decision aids for people facing health treatment or screening decisions

27 April 2012, 12:05
News > Shared decision making

The updated Cochrane review of 86 studies found that when patients use decision aids they improve their knowledge of the options; are helped to have more accurate expectations of possible benefits and harms; and reach choices that are more consistent with their informed values; and participate more in decision making. Decision aids were found to have a variable effect on actual choices but they reduce the choice of elective surgery when patients consider other options. When patients use decision aids, there appears to be a positive effect on communication with their health practitioner, and a variable effect on the time required for this consultation. Although there is an improvement with more detailed decision aids compared to simpler decision aid, the amount of improvement is smaller than that seen when decision aids are compared to usual care.

Research: Decision aids for respite service choices by carers of people with dementia

20 April 2012, 10:53
News > Shared decision making

Decision aids are often used to assist individuals confronted with a diagnosis of a serious illness to make decisions about treatment options. However, they are rarely utilised to help those with chronic or age related conditions to make decisions about care services. Decision aids should also be useful for carers of people with decreased decisional capacity. These carers' choices must balance health outcomes for themselves and for others, while relying on information from health professionals. This paper reports on a study that both developed and pilot tested a decision aid aimed at assisting carers to make evaluative judgements of community services, particularly respite care. Researchers concluded that the decision aid provided decisional support that carers do not otherwise receive. Decision aids may prove useful in a community health services context.

Putting people first through shared decision-making and collective involvement

30 March 2012, 12:46
News > Shared decision making

Involving and engaging patients and the public in decisions about their health and care improves outcomes, strengthens individual well-being and contributes towards more cohesive and healthier communities. And collectively involving patients and the public in the design and delivery of health services improves services and care and engages citizens as taxpayers to contribute to decisions about how resources are used. This paper from the NHS Confederation explores what it really means to put people first when commissioning and providing services, and sets out what we know about the benefits. It ends with a selection of useful case studies that demonstrate where shared decision-making has already made an impact.

Informed Medical Decisions Foundation: new name and new website

09 March 2012, 10:16
News > Shared decision making

Foundation for Informed Medical Decision Making in the US has changed it name and launched a new web site. As of February2012, the organisation becomes known as the Informed Medical Decisions Foundation. The Informed Medical Decisions Foundation has been working for over two decades to advance evidence-based shared decision making through research, policy, clinical models and patient decision aids. New features of the website include a comprehensive collection of shared decision making research.

Research: Do physicians' recommendations pull patients away from their preferred treatment options?

02 March 2012, 12:15
News > Shared decision making

This research investigates whether physicians' recommendations pull patients away from their preferred treatment option when making a preference-sensitive decision. In the decision scenario, about 48% of patients with schizophrenia and 26% of patients with multiple sclerosis followed the advice of their physician and thus chose the treatment option that went against their initial preferences. Patients who followed their physician's advice were less satisfied with their decision than patients not following their physician's advice.

Health Foundation Report: Leading the way to shared decision making

02 March 2012, 10:06
News > Shared decision making

The Health Foundation has this week published a report on the things the Commissioning Board should do to promote shared decision making with patients. The case for 'no decision about me, without me' is clear in ethics and in policy and is supported by a growing evidence base. However, to make it an everyday experience for patients requires a significant change in philosophy, in culture and in the roles of patients and professionals. This fundamental shift must be modelled and led by every part of the system to drive change in government and in the consulting room. In the report, the Health Foundation briefly introduce the concept of shared decision making and then look at each of these four areas of action for the NHS Commissioning Board.

Creating visuals for shared decision making

23 February 2012, 15:34
News > Shared decision making

There is quite a bit of evidence about best ways to convey risk information to help with policy or clinical decision making. Pictographs and bar graphs along with numbers and descriptions are considered best. Some emerging research suggests that some elements will help some patients more than others (for instance people with low numeracy). The Mayo Clinic shared decision making resource centre has and article this week about communicating risk using visual means, including ten steps to better risk communication.

Research: A systematic review of interventions to enhance shared decision making in routine clinical practice

10 February 2012, 11:09
News > Shared decision making

This systematic review evaluates the effectiveness of interventions to improve health professionals' adoption of shared decision making in routine clinical practice, as seen by patients. The authors concluded that multifaceted interventions that include educating health professionals about sharing decisions with patients and patient-mediated interventions, such as patient decision aids, appear promising for improving health professionals' adoption of shared decision making in routine clinical practice as seen by patients.

Research: Making choices about medical interventions: the experience of disabled young people

10 February 2012, 09:45
News > Shared decision making

The objective of the research was to explore the perspective and experiences of disabled young people with degenerative conditions as they face significant medical interventions and engage in decision-making processes. Researchers found a complex and diverse picture of decision making. How each young person framed their decision was important. Recognizing this diversity and the importance of emerging themes, such as living a normal life, independence, fear of decisions viewed as 'irreversible' and the role of parents and peers in decision making highlights that, there are clear practice implications including, active practitioner listening, sensitivity and continued holistic family working.

Report explores issues surrounding shared decision making in clinical practice

09 February 2012, 17:34
News > Shared decision making

In November 2011, the Royal College of Physicians hosted a workshop to explore issues surrounding shared decision making (SDM) in clinical practice. Their report, Shared decision making, captures some of the learning from the event and outlines key themes discussed and debated on the day. The workshop was planned in partnership with the Health Foundation and The King's Fund. The RCP invited key theoreticians in the field of shared decision making, and leaders in national programmes delivering partnership approaches to care, plus representatives from the medical royal colleges and specialist societies, to explore what this means both for patients, and for clinicians and their practice.