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Advancing Shared Decision Making
For over two decades, the Informed Medical Decisions Foundation has been working to advance shared decision making through research, policy, clinical models and patient decision aids. We believe that the only way to ensure high quality medical decisions are being made is for a fully informed patient to participate in a shared decision making process with their health care provider.
Current News from Informed Medical Decisions Foundation
MaineHealth Hosting Shared Decision Making Conference May 17th
MaineHealth, a demonstration site of the Informed Medical Decisions Foundation, will be hosting a conference on May 17th, featuring national and local experts on shared decision making (SDM). Attendees will have the opportunity to attend a number of sessions on topics such as end of life care, risk communication, decision aids, patient engagement and preference-sensitive care. Continue reading
Fear of Being Labeled “Difficult” May Keep Patients from Participating in Shared Decision Making
A new study published in the May issue of Health Affairs finds that some patients are concerned about being labeled “difficult” if they ask too many questions or disagree with a recommendation from their physician. “We found that patients want to participate in making decisions with their physicians, but feel vulnerable and worried that they might be perceived as too assertive, resulting in lower quality care in the future,” says Dr. Dominick Frosch, lead author of the study. Continue reading
Shared Decision Making: Who Benefits the Most May Surprise You
Not long ago, I was talking with a news reporter about an article we published on how surgical decisions are made. The paper reported that surgery patients too often were not given enough information about reasonable options. During our discussion the reporter remarked that the findings of the study were all well and good for some people, but didn’t apply to her elderly dad. Her dad would never have wanted to have information or be involved in medical decisions about his care. Instead, he would just look to his wife to tell him what to do. Continue reading
Shared Decision Making a Hot Topic at Health Journalism 2012 Conference
Last week the Association of Health Care Journalists held their Health Journalism 2012 conference in Atlanta, Georgia. Each year the conference seeks to provide context and clarity around health care issues that have taken center stage thanks to advances in medicine, political activity and public interest. So it’s no surprise that shared decision making was a hot topic at this year’s conference. Michael Barry, MD, president of the Foundation, was a member of the panel A reporter’s guide to medical decision making. Continue reading
Michael Barry on the “Choosing Wisely” Initiative
Last week, the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) Foundation launched their Choosing Wisely® initiative. The nine medical societies in support of the initiative are warning patients and doctors to choose wisely when it comes to 45 common medical tests. Michael J. Barry, president of the Informed Medical Decisions Foundation, provides a brief overview of the initiative and some key takeaways in the short video below. Continue reading
Decision Aids Shown (Again) to Improve Decision Quality
The updated Cochrane Collaborative review of 86 randomized control trials (in six countries), involving 34 decisions, set out to find out how well decision aids prepare people to participate in decisions that involve weighing benefits, harms and scientific uncertainty. What the authors found was that decision aids not only improve the individual’s knowledge of their options, including the benefits and harms of those options, but decision aids also assist people in reaching choices that are more consistent with their informed values, while fostering collaboration with their provider. Continue reading
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Tagged Cochrane Collaborative, decision aids, health care, shared decision making
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Landmark Shared Decision Making State Policy Paper Published by NASHP
The National Association for State Health Policy (NASHP), through an educational grant from the Informed Medical Decisions Foundation, has released a report entitled: “Shared Decision Making: Advancing Patient-Centered Care through State and Federal Implementation.” The authors examine the legislative and regulatory approaches used in Maine, Minnesota, Oregon, Vermont and Washington to promote shared decision making (SDM) implementation and make recommendations on how other states can incorporate SDM into their care delivery models. Continue reading
The Foundation’s 2011 Annual Research & Implementation Report Now Available Online
The Informed Medical Decisions Foundation publishes this progress report each year on the research and demonstration site projects we provide support to through funding initiatives. In addition, the Report provides an overview of some of the Foundation’s key research and implementation accomplishments over the past year. Continue reading
