title: Clinical decision-making: Patients' preferences and experiences.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine the congruence between patients' preferred style of clinical decision-making and the style they usually experienced and whether this congruence was associated with socio-economic status and/or the perceived quality of care provided by the respondent's regular doctor.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cross-sectional survey of the American public using computer-assisted telephone interviewing.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Three thousand two hundred and nine interviews were completed (completion rate 72%). Sixty-two percent of respondents preferred shared decision-making, 28% preferred consumerism and 9% preferred paternalism. Seventy percent experienced their preferred style of clinical decision-making. Experiencing the preferred style was associated with high income (OR, 1.59; 95% CI, 1.16-2.16) and having a regular doctor who was perceived as providing excellent or very good care (OR, 2.39; 95% CI, 1.83-3.11).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Both socio-economic status and having a regular doctor whom the respondent rated highly are independently associated with patients experiencing their preferred style of clinical decision-making.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Systems which promote continuity of care and the development of an on-going doctor-patient relationship may promote equity in health care, by helping patients experience their preferred style of clinical decision-making.
authors.affiliation: Department of Primary Care and Population Sciences, Royal Free and University College Medical School at University College London, Archway Campus, Highgate Hill, London N19 5LW, United Kingdom. elizabeth.murray@pcps.ucl.ac.uk
authors.forename: Elizabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Murray
authors.forename: Lance
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Pollack
authors.forename: Martha
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: White
authors.forename: Bernard
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Lo
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D002983:Clinical Competence; D003142:Communication; D003266:Continuity of Patient Care; D003299:Cooperative Behavior; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003657:Decision Making; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D007182:Income; D008875:Middle Aged; D026706:Paternalism; D010353:Patient Education as Topic / Q000458:organization & administration; D010358:Patient Participation / Q000379:methods / Q000523:psychology*; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D010819:Physician's Role / Q000523:psychology; D010817:Physician-Patient Relations; D011787:Quality of Health Care; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014481:United States