Concepts for the Development of Anesthesia-Related Patient Decision Aids

Abstract

Patient decision aids are educational tools used by health care providers to assist patients in choosing their treatment and care. The use of anesthesia-related patient decision aids can help practitioners provide patient-centered care by facilitating shared decision-making. The benefits of these aids have been well documented, yet a structured approach for developing patient decision aids in anesthesia has not been well established. Educating patients on various anesthesia-related options is paramount in their decision-making, yet accessible and validated resources are limited. In addition, many limitations exist with current patient decision aids that must be addressed. We have reviewed multiple processes for developing decision aids and have suggested a structured approach to their creation. We address the common limitations of current patient decision aids and provide improvements to the developmental process. Improvements include increasing patient input during development, thoroughly evaluating data included in the aids, and integrating a cyclic review of the aids before and after their use. Using the provided developmental process and checklist, anesthesia providers can create evidence-based patient decision aids in a standardized manner. It is important to evaluate decision aids and measure their decision quality, or patient-centeredness, to further improve them and maximize their effectiveness. Moving forward, development of proper metrics for patient participation and decision quality are required.