To determine whether shared decision making was associated with patient ratings of care quality, researchers surveyed more than 5,300 patients with lung or colorectal cancer between 2003 and 2005 about their preferred roles in their treatment decisions and their actual roles. Patients were also surveyed about their quality of care and physician communication ratings.
Highlighted below are their findings from the survey.
Preferred decision-making roles:
- Patient-controlled — 36 percent of patients indicated they would prefer to have complete control over their treatment decisions
- Shared — 58 percent
- Physician-controlled — 6 percent
Actual decision-making roles:
- Patient-controlled — 39 percent of patients indicated they actually had complete control over their treatment decisions
- Shared — 44 percent
- Physician-controlled — 17 percent
Quality of care ratings:
- Overall, 67.8 percent of patients rated their treatment as excellent and 55.8 percent gave their physicians the highest possible rating for communication.
- Patients who preferred physician-controlled decision-making were less likely than those who reported shared decision making to report excellent quality of care and physician communication.
- Patients who reported actually experiencing physician-controlled decision-making were also less likely to give their physicians and care top ratings.
“Given the increasing emphasis on patient experiences and ratings in healthcare, these results highlight the benefits of promoting shared decision-making among all patients with cancer, even those who express preferences for less active roles,” according to study authors.
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