Association of shared decision-making with type of breast cancer surgery: a cross-sectional study

Background  

Although some studies examined the association between shared decision-making (SDM) and type of breast cancer surgery received, it is little known how treatment decisions might be shaped by the information provided by physicians. The purpose of this study was to identify the associations between shared decision making (SDM) and surgical treatment received.     

Negotiating the ‘buffet’ of choice: advances in technology and end-of-life decision-making in the intensive care unit setting

In recent years, increases in medical technologies in the critical care setting have advanced the practice of medicine, enabling patients to live longer while also creating dilemmas for end-of-life decision-making. Clinicians have increasingly been called on to involve patients and family members in decision-making through a process of shared decision-making (SDM), yet less is known about how SDM plays out in the critical care setting and the ways in which clinicians engage in SDM. Using observational data from 14 months of ethnographic fieldwork in two intensive care units and interviews with 33 family members of 25 critically ill patients and 51 clinicians, I explore how clinicians refer to the choices available in medical decision-making paradoxically as a ‘buffet’ of choice while they simultaneously recognise that such rhetoric is misaligned with complex and emotional decision-making, often involving pain and suffering. Lastly, this paper considers the role of SDM and the ways in which clinicians push back on the ‘buffet’ rhetoric and engage in practices to guide families in end-of-life decision-making by granting permission for families to make decisions and validating their decisions to decline treatment when there is an opportunity for more treatment.     

The ethics of responsibility and ownership in decision-making about treatment for breast cancer: Triangulation of consultation with patient and surgeon perspectives

Doctors are widely encouraged to share decision-making with patients. However, the assumption that responsibility for decisions is an objective quantity that can be apportioned between doctors and patients is problematic. We studied treatment decisions from three perspectives simultaneously – observing consultations and exploring patients’ and doctors’ perspectives on these – to understand how decision-making that we observed related to participants’ subjective experience of responsibility. We audio-recorded post-operative consultations in which 20 patients who had undergone initial surgery for breast cancer discussed further treatment with one of eight surgeons in a general hospital serving a socioeconomically diverse urban population in England. We separately interviewed each patient and their surgeon within seven days of consultation to explore their perspectives on decisions that had been made. Qualitative analysis distinguished procedurally different types of decision-making and explored surgeons’ and patients’ perspectives on each. Surgeons made most decisions for patients, and only explicitly offered choices where treatment options were clinically equivocal. Procedurally, therefore, shared decision-making was absent and surgeons might be regarded as having neglected patients’ autonomy. Nevertheless, patients generally felt ownership of decisions that surgeons made for them because surgeons provided justifying reasons and because patients knew that they could refuse. Conversely, faced with choice, patients generally lacked trust in their own decisions and usually sought surgeons’ guidance. Therefore, from the perspective of ethical frameworks that conceptualise patient autonomy as relational and subjective, the surgeons were protecting patient autonomy. Studying subjective as well as procedural elements of decision-making can provide a broader perspective from which to evaluate practitioners’ decision-making behaviour.     

A skills network approach to physicians’ competence in shared decision making

BackgroundMeasurement of physicians’ competence in shared decision making (SDM) remains challenging with frequent disagreement between assessment methods.ObjectiveTo conceptualize and measure physicians’ SDM competence as an organized network of behavioural skills and to determine whether processing patient‐reported data according to this model can be used to predict observer‐rated competence.DesignSecondary analysis of an observational study.Setting and participantsPrimary and specialty outpatient care physicians and consecutively recruited adult patients with a chronic condition who faced a treatment decision with multiple acceptable choices.MeasuresNetwork parameters constructed from patients’ assessment of physicians’ SDM skills as measured by the 9‐item Shared Decision Making Questionnaire (SDM‐Q‐9) and observer‐rated SDM competence of physicians measured by three widely used observer‐rated instruments.Results29 physicians (12 female, 17 male; mean age 50.3 years) recruited 310 patients (59.4% female, 40.6% male; mean age 54.0 years) facing a decision mainly regarding type 2 diabetes (36.4%), chronic back pain (32.8%) or depressive disorder (26.8%). Although most investigated skills were interrelated, elicitation of the patient''s treatment preferences showed the strongest associations with the other skills. Network parameters of this skill were also decisive in predicting observer‐rated competence. Correlation between predicted competence scores and observer‐rated measurements ranged from 0.710 to 0.785.ConclusionsConceptualizing physicians’ SDM competence as a network of interacting skills enables the measurement of observer‐rated competence using patient‐reported data. In addition to theoretical implications for defining and training medical competences, the findings open a new way to measure physicians’ SDM competence under routine conditions.     

The Influence of Social Networks on Patients’ Attitudes Toward Type II Diabetes

Social networks are increasingly recognized as important determinants of many chronic diseases, yet little data exist regarding the influence of social networks on diabetes. We surveyed diabetic patients to determine how social networks affect their overall level of concern regarding diabetes and its complications. We adapted a previously published instrument and surveyed 240 diabetic patients at two primary care practices. Patients recorded the number of family and friends who had diabetes and rated their level of concern about diabetes on a scale of 0% (no concern) to 100% (extremely concerned). Our primary outcome variable was patients’ level of concern (<75% or ≥75%). We developed logistic regression models to determine the effect of disease burden in patients’ social networks on expressed level of concern about diabetes. We received 154 surveys (64% response rate). We found that for each additional family member with diabetes, patients expressed a greater level of concern about diabetes (AOR 1.5; 95% CI 1.2–2.0) and its potential complications (AOR 1.4; 95% CI 1.1–1.7). Similarly, patients with an increased number of friends with diabetes expressed greater concern about diabetes (AOR 1.5; 95% CI 1.2–1.9) and its complications (AOR 1.3; 95% CI 1.1–1.7). Patients with a higher prevalence of diabetes within their social networks expressed greater concern about diabetes and diabetic complications. Determining disease burden within patients’ social networks may allow physicians to better understand patients’ perspectives on their disease and ultimately help them achieve meaningful behavioral change.     

How should patients behave to facilitate shared decision making – the doctors’ view

Objective To study how physicians feel about patients’ efforts to be engaged in shared decision making (SDM). Study setting and design Survey of physicians from distinctly different medical disciplines (238 psychiatrists and 169 vascular surgeons). Participants were requested to judge which patient behaviours they find helpful and which behaviours detrimental for SDM. Results Psychiatrists and surgeons had rather positive attitudes about active patient behaviours. However, there were quite a few patient behaviours (e.g. searching the Internet, being assertive towards the doctor) which provoked ambivalent or negative attitudes. Discussion and conclusions Physicians are generally quite open towards active patient behaviour in the consultation. They, however, do consider it as less helpful and become more annoyed if patients insist on their preferences and doubt their doctors’ recommendations. Physicians must realize that SDM implies giving up decisional power and try to be more flexible in their interactions with patients.     

Decision making preferences in the medical encounter – a factorial survey design

Background  

Up to now it has not been systematically investigated in which kind of clinical situations a consultation style based on shared decision making (SDM) is preferred by patients and physicians. We suggest the factorial survey design to address this problem.     

Beneficent Persuasion: Techniques and Ethical Guidelines to Improve Patients’ Decisions

Physicians frequently encounter patients who make decisions that contravene their long-term goals. Behavioral economists have shown that irrationalities and self-thwarting tendencies pervade human decision making, and they have identified a number of specific heuristics (rules of thumb) and biases that help explain why patients sometimes make such counterproductive decisions. In this essay, we use clinical examples to describe the many ways in which these heuristics and biases influence patients’ decisions. We argue that physicians should develop their understanding of these potentially counterproductive decisional biases and, in many cases, use this knowledge to rebias their patients in ways that promote patients’ health or other values. Using knowledge of decision-making psychology to persuade patients to engage in healthy behaviors or to make treatment decisions that foster their long-term goals is ethically justified by physicians’ duties to promote their patients’ interests and will often enhance, rather than limit, their patients’ autonomy. We describe techniques that physicians may use to frame health decisions to patients in ways that are more likely to motivate patients to make choices that are less biased and more conducive to their long-term goals. Marketers have been using these methods for decades to get patients to engage in unhealthy behaviors; employers and policy makers are beginning to consider the use of similar approaches to influence healthy choices. It is time for clinicians also to make use of behavioral psychology in their interactions with patients.     

How can Primary Care Physicians Best Support Contraceptive Decision Making? A Qualitative Study Exploring the Perspectives of Baltimore Latinas

ObjectivesU.S. Latinas experience disproportionately high rates of unintended pregnancy and low rates of consistent contraception use. Not well known are Latinas' perspectives about how primary care physicians (PCPs) might facilitate or deter contraceptive decision making. The theory of planned behavior has been used previously to explain contraceptive behaviors. This study used the theory of planned behavior as a guide to help describe Latinas' perspectives regarding specific factors that influence their contraceptive decision making and to describe their perspectives about the role of PCPs in the decision making.Study Design and MethodsWe conducted focus groups (n = 3) and interviews (n = 8) of Latinas ages 15 to 24 years, recruited from urban primary care sites in Baltimore, Maryland. Concepts from the theory of planned behavior were used to develop a coding scheme and guide identification of themes.ResultsSixteen Latinas participated; all were immigrants.ThemesThe desire to avoid unintended pregnancy is dominant and, not surprisingly, is the main driver of contraceptive intentions. The role of PCPs in contraceptive decision making is to build strong patient relationships through heightened communication and trust. PCPs should develop trust and foster communication by using a shared decision-making approach in contraceptive counseling. Religious norms rarely operate as barriers to contraceptive use, yet positive reinforcement from family, friends, and schools is viewed as supportive.Conclusions and ImplicationsFor this group of young, immigrant Latinas, there is a pervasive desire for effective communication and trusting relationships with PCPs. Findings suggest that providers can facilitate contraceptive decision making for this population by using a shared decision-making approach to contraceptive counseling.     

Understanding how shared decision-making approaches and patient aids influence patients with advanced cancer when deciding on palliative treatments and care: A realist review

Background

Patients with advanced incurable cancer face difficult decisions about palliative treatment options towards their end of life. However, they are often not provided with the appropriate information and support that is needed to make informed decisions. This review aimed to identify contexts and mechanisms associated with communication tools, patient decision-aids and shared decision-making (SDM) approaches that influence patient outcomes.

Methods

We used a realist review method to search for published studies of patients (adults > 18) with advanced cancer who were expected to make a decision about palliative treatment and/or supportive care in consultation with healthcare practitioners. We appraised and synthesised literature describing the contexts of (when and how) decision aids and SDM approaches are used, and how these contexts interact with mechanisms (resources and reasoning) which impact patient outcomes. Stakeholders including academics, palliative healthcare professionals (HCPs) and people with lived experience of supporting people with advanced incurable cancer contributed to identifying explanatory accounts. These accounts were documented, analysed and consolidated to contribute to the development of a programme theory.

Results

From the 33 included papers, we consolidated findings into 20 explanatory accounts to develop a programme theory that explains key contexts and mechanisms that influence patient and SDM. Contexts include underlying patients' and HCPs' attitudes and approaches. These need to be understood in relation to key mechanisms, including presenting information in multiple formats and providing adequate time and opportunities to prepare for and revisit decisions. Contexts influenced mechanisms which then influence the levels of patient decisional satisfaction, conflict and regret.

Conclusions

Our programme theory highlights mechanisms that are important in supporting shared treatment decisions for advanced noncurative cancer. The findings are informative for developing and evaluating interventions to improve understanding and involvement in SDM for patients with advanced incurable cancer.

Patient and Public Contribution

We included patient and public involvement (PPI) representatives in four stakeholder meetings. PPI helped to define the scope of the review, identify their unique experiences and perspectives, synthesise their perspectives with our review findings, make decisions about which theories we included in our programme theory and develop recommendations for policy and practice and future research.     

Heart Matters: Gender and Racial Differences Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factor Control Among Veterans

BackgroundCardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of mortality for U.S. women. Racial minorities are a particularly vulnerable population. The increasing female veteran population has an higher prevalence of certain cardiovascular risk factors compared with non-veteran women; however, little is known about gender and racial differences in cardiovascular risk factor control among veterans.MethodsWe used analysis of variance, adjusting for age, to compare gender and racial differences in three risk factors that predispose to CVD (diabetes, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia) in a cohort of high-risk veterans eligible for enrollment in a clinical trial, including 23,955 men and 1,010 women.FindingsLow-density lipoprotein (LDL) values were higher in women veterans than men with age-adjusted estimated mean values of 111.7 versus 97.6 mg/dL (p < .01). Blood pressures (BPs) were higher among African-American than White female veterans with age-adjusted estimated mean systolic BPs of 136.3 versus 133.5 mmHg, respectively (p < .01), and diastolic BPs of 82.4 versus 78.9 mmHg (p < .01). African-American veterans with diabetes had worse BP, LDL values, and hemoglobin A1c levels, although the differences were only significant among men.ConclusionsFemale veterans have higher LDL cholesterol levels than male veterans and African-American veterans have higher BP, LDL cholesterol, and A1c levels than Whites after adjusting for age. Further examination of CVD gender and racial disparities in this population may help to develop targeted treatments and strategies applicable to the general population.     

Shared Decision Making During Active Psychiatric Hospitalization: Assessment and Psychometric Properties

Encouraging patients to be involved in their care and enhancing shared decision making (SDM) have been advocated over the past two decades as means to enhance patient-centered care. However, one of the barriers to implementing SDM in medical consultations is the need to adapt this approach to various populations and medical settings, including mental health, and developing reliable and practical methods for measuring and assessing SDM. This article presents the psychometric properties and validity of a revised scale, SDM-Q-9-Psy, that assesses SDM in routine care among psychiatric inpatients. Psychiatric inpatients were included in a SDM intervention cohort (n = 46) or a control cohort (n = 40). The adapted scale was administered after a decision-making process. The scale was subsequently psychometrically tested via factor and reliability analyses. It was also tested for convergent validity and for its ability to distinguish the degree of SDM between the intervention and control groups (construct validity). The SDM-Q-9-Psy scale yielded a Cronbach’s α of .94. Convergent and construct validity parameters were good. The SDM-Q-9-Psy scale can be used to evaluate SDM from psychiatric inpatients’ perspective and to provide rapid feedback to mental health professionals, enabling them to monitor their decision-making practice in real-time clinical consultations.     

Shared Decision Making and Patient Decision Aids: Knowledge,Attitudes, and Practices Among Hawai‘i Physicians

Background: As the health care field moves toward patient-centered care (PCC), increasing emphasis has been placed on the benefits of patient decision aids for promoting shared decision making (SDM). This study provides a baseline measure of knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) among Hawai‘i''s physicians with respect to patient decision aids (DAs). Physicians throughout the State of Hawai‘i were invited to complete a survey assessing their knowledge, attitudes, and practices with respect to the clinical use of DAs.One hundred and seventy four valid surveys were analyzed. Reported awareness and use of DAs were low, but recognition of the benefits of SDM and openness to the use of DAs were very high. The leading perceived barriers to the implementation of DAs were lack of awareness, lack of resources, and limited physician time to learn about DA technology. However, a significant majority of the respondents reported that DAs could empower patients by improving knowledge (88%), increasing satisfaction with the consultation process (81%), and increasing compliance (74%). Among physicians currently employing DAs, use of brochures or options matrix sheets was the most common aid tool. However, leading recommended DA formats were paper-based brochures for clinic use (75%) and interactive online website programs for outside clinic use (73.5%). Given growing emphasis on the PCC model and the recognized desire of many patients to participate in the medical decision making process, positive responses toward SDM and the use of DAs by Hawai‘i physicians are promising.     

Pairing Physician Education With Patient Activation to Improve Shared Decisions in Prostate Cancer Screening: A Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial

BACKGROUND

Most expert groups recommend shared decision making for prostate cancer screening. Most primary care physicians, however, routinely order a prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test with little or no discussion about whether they believe the potential benefits justify the risk of harm. We sought to assess whether educating primary care physicians and activating their patients to ask about prostate cancer screening had a synergistic effect on shared decision making, rates and types of discussions about prostate cancer screening, and the physician’s final recommendations.

METHODS

Our study was a cluster randomized controlled trial among primary care physicians and their patients, comparing usual education (control), with physician education alone (MD-Ed), and with physician education and patient activation (MD-Ed+A). Participants included 120 physicians in 5 group practices, and 712 male patients aged 50 to 75 years. The interventions comprised a Web-based educational program for all intervention physicians and MD-Ed+A patients compared with usual education (brochures from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention). The primary outcome measure was patients’ reported postvisit shared decision making regarding prostate cancer screening; secondary measures included unannounced standardized patients’ reported shared decision making and the physician’s recommendation for prostate cancer screening.

RESULTS

Patients’ ratings of shared decision making were moderate and did not differ between groups. MD-Ed+A patients reported that physicians had higher prostate cancer screening discussion rates (MD-Ed+A = 65%, MD-Ed = 41%, control=38%; P <.01). Standardized patients reported that physicians seeing MD-Ed+A patients were more neutral during prostate cancer screening recommendations (MD-Ed+A=50%, MD-Ed=33%, control=15%; P <.05). Of the male patients, 80% had had previous PSA tests.

CONCLUSIONS

Although activating physicians and patients did not lead to significant changes in all aspects of physician attitudes and behaviors that we studied, interventions that involved physicians did have a large effect on their attitudes toward screening and in the discussions they had with patients, including their being more likely than control physicians to engage in prostate cancer screening discussions and more likely to be neutral in their final recommendations.     

Knowledge,Attitudes, and Beliefs Regarding HPV Vaccination: Ethnic and Cultural Differences Between African-American and Haitian Immigrant Women

BackgroundBlack women have higher rates of cervical cancer and lower rates of HPV vaccination than White women in the United States, and Haitians may be an especially vulnerable subgroup of Black women. To reduce these disparities, understanding differences among subgroups of Black women is crucial.MethodsThe objective of our study was to assess similarities and differences in the knowledge, attitudes, beliefs, and practices toward HPV vaccination and actual vaccination rates among African-American and Haitian immigrant women and their daughters. We used validated surveys of HPV knowledge, trust in physicians, acculturation, and constructs of the health belief model: Perceived susceptibility, severity, and barriers. We probed women's thought processes about vaccination using open-ended questions. We then reviewed medical records to determine vaccination rates.ResultsNineteen African Americans and 51 Haitians participated. Although 75% of Haitians and 63% of African Americans intended to vaccinate their daughters, only 47% of African-American and 31% of Haitian daughters were vaccinated. African Americans were more knowledgeable than Haitians and had more prior experience with HPV disease. Most African Americans felt that vaccination fell within the parental role, whereas many Haitians felt uncomfortable vaccinating against sexually transmitted infections because they felt children should not be having sex. Both ethnic groups wanted more information about HPV vaccines.ConclusionCultural differences between African-American and Haitian immigrant mothers revealed distinct barriers for vaccine acceptance. Improving HPV vaccine rates in Black women may require culturally competent and sensitive approaches that address ethnic-specific barriers.     

Conception et évaluation d’une intervention brève « alimentation et prévention cardiovasculaire » en médecine de premier recours

The goal of our project was to assess acceptability and feasibility of a 5-step brief intervention (BI) on diet and coronary heart disease (CHD) prevention by general practitioners in a primary care setting. The intervention process and its acceptability by patients and physicians were assessed by standardised interviews and questionnaires, measuring the proportion of patients included, BI duration, perceived obstacles, usefulness and relevance of BI, patients’ knowledge and planned behavior change. Of 99 eligible patients, 76 (77 %) participated and 48 received the BI, which took 5–10 minutes in the consultation. Three of the five steps were usually (38 %) performed. The five physicians were interested and motivated but mentioned lack of time. Most patients (77 %) said they had learned something new about their diet in relation to CHD, and 64 % were able to express at least one dietary habit they planned to change. Ninety-eight percent considered it was their physician's role to discuss their diet to prevent CHD. However, BI's implementation proves difficult in physicians’ routine.     

Shared Decision Making in the Care of Children with Developmental and Behavioral Disorders

Objective Shared decision making (SDM) is most needed when there are multiple treatment options and no “right” choice. As with quality and experience of care, frequency of SDM may vary by health condition. The objectives of this study were (1) to compare parent report of SDM between a physical and a behavioral health condition and; (2) to compare parent report of SDM between two different behavioral health conditions. Methods Data on children age 3–17 years with asthma, attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and/or autism spectrum disorder (ASD) were drawn from the 2009/10 National Survey of Children with Special Health Care Needs. Weighted logistic regression was used to compare a parent-reported, composite measure of SDM. Analyses controlled for sociodemographic factors that may influence experience of SDM. Results Compared to parents of children with asthma, parents of children with ADHD were significantly less likely to report experiencing consistent SDM (AOR 0.73). Compared to parents of children with ADHD, those of children with ASD had significantly lower odds of experiencing consistent SDM (AOR 0.59). Those with both ADHD and ASD had the same odds as those with ASD alone of experiencing consistent SDM. Conclusion Use of SDM is particularly limited in developmental and behavioral conditions, such as ADHD and ASD. These data suggest that challenges to implementing SDM may include disease type, complexity, and use of specialty care. Research to identify specific barriers and facilitators of SDM is needed to inform interventions that will promote SDM in developmental and behavioral conditions.     

The role of physicians' knowledge and attitudes in effective diabetes management

We examined the role of physicians' knowledge and attitudes in effective diabetes management among internal medicine house staff. We examined the extent to which (1) knowledge of common diabetes management strategies and (2) beliefs about the efficacy of, and intentions to engage in, such strategies predict success in their management of patients with diabetes. Successful managers are those house staff whose ambulatory diabetes patients' fasting blood sugar levels were lower than the clinic median. Knowledge was assessed with a written case simulation of an obese noninsulin-dependent woman; beliefs and intentions were surveyed through a self-administered questionnaire. The data suggest that knowledge was unable to discriminate physicians who are relatively successful in controlling their patient's blood sugar levels from those who are less successful. However using intentions related to initial and follow-up management strategies and beliefs about the benefits of achieving euglycemia, there was discrimination between the two physician groups (P < 0.001). These findings suggest that beliefs are important in understanding why some physicians are successful managers. Further, if beliefs are mutable, continuing medical education courses could be more effective by fostering critical beliefs rather than depending solely upon the transfer of new medical information.