Reflections on Shared Decision Making

Abstract

Decisions about medical and surgical treatment can be complex—even for health care providers, who can struggle with which treatment option to offer their patients. In the current landscape of patient-centric value-based health care, the need for appropriate medical decision making to maximize treatment outcomes is evermore important. Shared decision making is a process in which clinicians and patients make decisions together using the best available evidence while accounting for the patients’ values and beliefs. A patient-centered approach has been associated with improved patient satisfaction, clinical outcomes, and patient adherence to treatment. Only by taking a collaborative care approach among patients, physicians, and caregivers can we hope to deliver the best possible care and improve our outcomes for each and every patient.