title: Towards generic online multicriteria decision support in patient-centred health care.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To introduce a new online generic decision support system based on multicriteria decision analysis (MCDA), implemented in practical and user-friendly software (Annalisa©).
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  All parties in health care lack a simple and generic way to picture and process the decisions to be made in pursuit of improved decision making and more informed choice within an overall philosophy of person- and patient-centred care.
  
  
  METHODS
  The MCDA-based system generates patient-specific clinical guidance in the form of an opinion as to the merits of the alternative options in a decision, which are all scored and ranked. The scores for each option combine, in a simple expected value calculation, the best estimates available now for the performance of those options on patient-determined criteria, with the individual patient's preferences, expressed as importance weightings for those criteria. The survey software within which the Annalisa file is embedded (Elicia©) customizes and personalizes the presentation and inputs. Principles relevant to the development of such decision-specific MCDA-based aids are noted and comparisons with alternative implementations presented. The necessity to trade-off practicality (including resource constraints) with normative rigour and empirical complexity, in both their development and delivery, is emphasized.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The MCDA-/Annalisa-based decision support system represents a prescriptive addition to the portfolio of decision-aiding tools available online to individuals and clinicians interested in pursuing shared decision making and informed choice within a commitment to transparency in relation to both the evidence and preference bases of decisions. Some empirical data establishing its usability are provided.
authors.affiliation: London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK.
authors.forename: Jack
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Dowie
authors.affiliation: Institute of Public Health, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark.
authors.forename: Mette
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kjer Kaltoft
authors.affiliation: Sydney School of Public Health, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
authors.forename: Glenn
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Salkeld
authors.affiliation: NHMRC Clinical Trials Centre, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
authors.forename: Michelle
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cunich
mesh_terms: D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D020000:Decision Support Systems, Clinical; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet; D018802:Patient-Centered Care; D012984:Software
keywords: decision aid; decision support; multicriteria decision analysis; patient preferences
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