Doctor-patient decision-making

Patient preferences, communication, shared decision-making, self-management and eHealth

For better decision-making and patient outcomes, doctor-patient communication is germane, also in the context of Value-Based HealthCare. The call for patient-centred care requires a change in both patient and clinician attitudes and behaviour. Other than most communication research, the research of our group focuses on decision-making processes. Our research on shared decision making (SDM) is internationally recognized. We study decision-making processes, risk communication, patient preferences, patient role in decision processes, ethics, and the extent to which patient and clinician collaboration leads to sensible care plans that fit for each person. Methodological research involves the development and validation of measurement instruments for assessing SDM and determinants or mediators of SDM (such as patient readiness for SDM and self-management). Patient portals and eHealth applications such as eCoaching are evaluated, expecting them to improve SDM and self-management by empowering patients both before and after the clinical consultation, hence improving personalized healthcare. Moreover, we study decision-making aspects of value-based healthcare, such as the use of Patient-Reported Outcome Measures in the clinical consultation, and service design methods to support better doctor-patient decision making, notably MetroMapping.