“Decision support” refers to anything that can support the decision making of providers and patients alike. If it contributes to better decision making, it counts as decision support. We need to make such information available and accessible to providers and patients in order to assist in the decision-making process.

The Latest Scientific Evidence

Evidence that supports clinical decision making, such as reports of clinical trials in refereed medical journals, when used to support choices among alternative courses of treatment, medications, procedures, and/or behavior change options are as valuable to patients as to providers. Established practice procedures for gathering, rapidly accessing and sharing such information are essential in assuring adequate provider preparation and that patients are well informed.

Accessing the Latest Scientific Evidence

Making Information Truly Accessible

A key aspect of sharing information with your patients is to communicate it effectively.  It’s easy to revert to using jargon or acronyms that are familiar to providers, but it’s important to remember what your patient will understand easily.  If you find yourself using this type of language, a patient will often appreciate it if you immediately offer a down-to-earth way of saying the same thing or even an explanation of what the acronym represents.  This turns a potential miscommunication into an opportunity for patient education. The Center for Health Literacy offers a number of links to resources that might help you improve communication with your patients.  

Enhancing Support for Patient Decision Making

It’s important to note that taking the time to make sure information is easily digested and understood is not the same thing as dumbing it down.  Along those same lines, makes sure that you offer all of the facts to your patient.  For example, when discussing inconclusive or mixed evidence, it’s seldom helpful to hedge around this fact.  Let your patient know that you’ve discovered a variety of bad news and convey your understanding of how these pieces of information will impact your patient’s individual situation. “Since the evidence is mixed, I’m afraid this is probably not going to be an easy decision to make.” 

Other Sources of Decision Support

While the standard of care calls for sharing evidence-based information whenever available, it can be helpful for providers to share other sorts of information that guide decision making, such as the professional judgment of opinion leaders and specialists that one often takes in account.  As a patient, valuable support for decision making can often be found in the conversations that take place in patient support groups.  Follow the link below to read more ways you can help support patient decision making.