Patient provider decision sharing: Better decisions together

People who are active participants in their own care - in cooperation with health care providers - tend to have better outcomes. Yet often patients receive treatment without fully understanding their options and engaging in the decision process. The NNCC is collaborating with the Pennsylvania Governor's Office of Healthcare Reform, Temple University, Foundation for Informed Medical Decision Making and PHMC to implement the Patient Provider Decision Sharing Project. The goal is to empower patients to take a more active role in the health care decision making process, thus enabling them to access treatment that appropriately reflects their values.

The Patient Provider Decision Sharing project targets uninsured and Medicaid-qualified patients in five federally qualified health centers, unique compared to the usual privately insured. The health centers serve primarily public housing residents and the homeless.

The Project empowers patients to engage in meaningful dialogue with health care providers in making decisions about their health. In the second year of the project, continuing to use DVD decision aids produced by Health Dialogue, the available coaching was transitioned to onsite RN Care Managers to ensure understanding of the content in the decision aids and the inclusion of the individual patient's values. Currency of evidence for the decision aids is maintained by the Foundation for Informed Decision Making (www.informedmedicaldecisions.org). The decision aids selected, pre- and post-viewing surveys and 30 day follow-up surveys will be shared, along with the response to this value added service from involved primary care providers and the RN Care Managers.