Preferences and experiences of chronically ill and disabled patients regarding shared decision-making: does the type of care to be decided upon matter?

Objective: (1) To describe the importance chronically ill and disabled patients attach to involvement in decision-making when various care types are considered, and (2) to analyse the degree to which these patients are involved in shared decision-making (SDM) regarding these care types, and whether their involvement reflects the importance they attach to SDM.

Methods: The study sample consisted of 812 chronically ill and disabled patients who experienced a situation of decision-making during the last year. Data were collected by a self-report survey in 2006 and were analysed by multilevel linear regression analyses.

Results: Participants attached most importance to SDM when occupational healthcare issues were at stake, but perceived their actual involvement in these decisions as relatively low. Patients dealing with decision-making regarding medical care or home care experienced higher levels of involvement. The importance attached to SDM corresponds moderately with the actual role patients experience in the decision-making process.

Conclusion: The type of care to decide upon impacts on the importance patients attach to SDM as well as on their actual involvement in decision-making.

Practice Implications: We suggest healthcare practitioners to pay attention to the preferred level of patient involvement each time a new care issue has to be decided upon.