Your Health – Your Decision

Shared Decision Making should no longer be considered an option for patient care in the NHS but a basic requirement. There is a wealth of evidence that diagnosing patients’ preferences is of vital importance in delivering effective, patient centered care, yet there is evidence that the NHS is failing to deliver this. Implementing Shared Decision Making requires several key steps:

• Crucially a shift in clinical attitude from a paternalistic model of care to one where the patient is seen as an equal partner
• Organisational changes so Shared Decision Making is seen as a basic requirement, and provider boards, commissioners and primary care have plans for its implementation
• Commissioning levers that require providers of NHS care to deliver Shared Decision Making
• Infrastructure changes that embed Shared Decision Making in NHS Information Technology and clinical record systems
• Tools for patient empowerment such as “Ask Three Questions”
• Tools for clinical use such as Patient Decision Aids (PDAs)
• The ability to measure decision making in a manner that drives continuous quality improvement

AQuA was delighted to win part of the Department of Health QIPP Right Care National tender for Shared Decision Making in the crucial area of culture change. The programme has been very successful in delivering culture change, patient empowerment and tools to measure Shared Decision Making in everyday clinical practice, in a range of settings and clinical pathways.

This report tells the story of AQuA’s work over the past year and we hope it incentivises readers to implement Shared Decision Making in their own practice and organisations.

Download Your health – Your Decision Evaluation Report pdf