Patients' information needs and decision-making processes: what can be learned from genetic counselees?
This field study investigated the information needs and decision-making strategies of 161 genetic counselees interviewed just prior to counseling. Patients were interested mostly in information about the outcomes and consequences of the alternative options at their disposal and about measures to defuse the risks. They wanted mainly information stated with certainty and were less interested in probability information. There was no difference in the search for information between the alternative eventually chosen and the one not chosen. There was a difference, however, among types of decisions and the interest in the various categories of information. These findings were interpreted within the theoretical model of decision making in natural risky situations (O. Huber, 1997). Practical implications for shared medical decision making are presented.
Department of Psychology, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel. shoshi@freud.tau.ac.il
Shoshana
S
Shiloh
Liora
L
Gerad
Boleslav
B
Goldman
D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D005817:Genetic Counseling; D006301:Health Services Needs and Demand; D006801:Humans; D016247:Information Storage and Retrieval; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D007557:Israel; D008297:Male; D010353:Patient Education as Topic; D010358:Patient Participation