Communication Rx: Transforming Healthcare Through Relationship-Centered Communication

CHAPTER 9

Shared Decision-Making

In Chapter 8, we talked about motivational interviewing, a process in which we start from a place of knowing what is best for the patient. For example, virtually all clinicians would agree that patients should stop smoking to improve their health. In contrast, in shared decision-making (SDM), there may be more than one right answer. Shared decision-making is the practice of eliciting a patient’s informed preferences regarding a screening or treatment decision. Our goal is to help patients choose the answers that will work best for them.

Decision-making is complex. Think about a common decision we make such as buying a car. We usually do research before we go to an auto dealer. We talk to our friends about why ...