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SHARED DECISIONMAKING PATIENT AND PHYSICIAN PERSPECTIVES ON SHARED DECISIONMAKING Shared decision-making is a concept and an action. Shared decisionmaking occurs when the health care professional and patient work to develop a treatment plan that is best for the patient. The best decision takes into account evidencebased information about the various treatment options, the physician’s knowledge and experience, and the patient’s preferences, values, and other life factors they may consider important. It is the epitome of patient centered care and requires competences from both the patient and the healthcare professional.
BENEFITS OF SHARED DECISION-MAKING FOR THE PHYSICIAN Without appropriate expectations, patients are much more likely to be unhappy with the results of their treatment or procedure and may suffer decisional regret. Shared decisionmaking prevents this cycle by placing the patient’s preferences and values at the center of the decision-making process. Multiple studies throughout various medical fields have shown shared decision-making improves patient outcomes and satisfaction. Shared decision-making can also be quite rewarding for the physician - not only is it an effective and ethical way to interact with patients, it creates the opportunity to deliver more patientcentered care. While some treatment options or procedures may have proven advantages in certain clinical situations, there is often no universal ‘best’ choice and as doctors, we must acknowledge that patient needs and wants can vary tremendously. Physicians must be willing to acknowledge and consider patients’ personal values and preferences while assessing and discussing what is medically appropriate and reasonable. In doing so, shared decision-making not only improves patient satisfaction and outcomes but is also an effective and extremely ethical approach in ensuring patient goals are met whenever possible. While shared decision-making is standard of care, unfortunately it is not standard practice. An important factor here is time; many patients feel they don’t have enough time to process all the information and can feel they are being rushed into making a decision. In addition, some physicians, through no fault of their own, simply do not have adequate time to allow for a shared decision-making conversation with every patient. This is where patient-centered decision aids are invaluable, providing patients the opportunity to access and review the information they need at their own pace.
