Sharing decisions during diagnostic consultations; an observational study in pediatric oncology

The implementation and strategy of triadic communication in pediatric oncology: a scoping review

Triad child-parent-professional communication is considered a priority in evaluating and optimizing therapeutic alliance in pediatric oncology. This scoping review aimed to map the existing evidence in implementation, influencing factors, and strategies of triadic communication in pediatric oncology. Using Arksey and O'Malley's framework, we searched 5 databases and grey literature until June 15th, 2024. Two researchers selected studies and extracted data independently. The PAGER framework was employed to summarize the implications of existing research to inform future research and practice. A total of 24 articles were included. Healthcare professionals usually initiate triadic communication. Communication topics rarely focused on prognosis, emotions, and end-of-life care. The triad child-parent-professional exhibited similarities in language, emotional, and decision-making communication preferences but differed regarding skills and information preferences. The roles of the triad parts were unclear, especially nurses' role, responsibilities, and contributions were seldom specified. Factors influencing the implementation spanned individual, organizational, and socio-cultural levels. Five types including 21 specific suggested strategies were identified to facilitate implementation, yet few strategies were adopted by patients and caregivers, and limited effectiveness studies have evaluated specific strategies. Overall, while triadic communication has received considerable attention in the world, its practical implementation in real-world settings remains largely underdeveloped. IMPACT: Our research has mapped the global trajectories of triadic communication between child-parent-professional throughout the cancer journey. A precise delineation of roles and responsibilities within the triadic communication framework in pediatric oncology is crucial for augmenting collaborative efforts and achieving optimal coordination among stakeholders. Healthcare professionals could partner with families to comprehend individual communication preferences, cultivating a collaborative relationship that honors each participant's needs and enhances informed decision-making. The findings equip healthcare professionals with a range of strategies to navigate communication with children with cancer and their parents.

Parental Decision-Making in Cancer Therapy: A Long-Term Observational Study

Parental participation in shared decision-making in children's cancer therapy is essential because parents advocate for and support their children's wishes. However, little research has focused on this issue. We conducted a longitudinal observational study of 7 parents whose child had received their first cancer treatment. We recorded parents' behaviors, interactions, and narratives in 1 pediatric ward and 2 outpatient clinics. The recordings were systematically conducted and thematically analyzed using variable-oriented and process-oriented modes to assess the causal relationships among phenomena. We found 4 themes describing the processes by which parents developed and participated in shared decision-making. The first 2 themes reflected the development of reciprocal parental relationships and parent-other child relationships. These 2 types of relationship generated mutual trust and a sense of solidarity among parents (the third theme). This, in turn, became the foundation for parents to share decision-making with health care professionals (the fourth theme).

Scale Validation of the Mandarin-Language Supportive Care Needs Survey-Adolescent Form

OBJECTIVES

To (1) modify the Mandarin-language 34-item Supportive Care Needs Survey-Adult Form into the Adolescent Form and (2) examine the psychometric properties of the Adolescent Form.

DATA SOURCES

A multiphase, iterative scale validation process was used in this methodological study. Participants who were 13 to 18 years old and receiving cancer treatment in inpatient or outpatient settings, or receiving follow-up care in outpatient settings, were recruited using a convenience sampling method. Confirmatory factor analysis demonstrated good fitness of indices, and all factor loadings for the 18-item Adolescent Form were >0.50, which supported the scale's construct validity. The Adolescent Form score was significantly correlated with the symptom distress score (r = 0.56, P < .01) and quality of life score (r = -0.65, P < .01), which indicated the scale's convergent validity. The correlated item-total correlations (0.30-0.78), Cronbach's alpha (.93), and test-retest reliability coefficient (0.79) confirmed the scale's stability.

CONCLUSION

This study successfully modified the 34-item Adult Form into the 18-item Adolescent Form. Given its adequate psychometric properties, this concise scale has great promise as a useful, feasible, and age-appropriate tool for evaluating care needs among adolescents with cancer who speak Mandarin.

IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING PRACTICE

This scale can screen for unmet care needs in busy pediatric oncology settings or large-scale clinical trials. It allows for cross-sectional comparison of unmet care needs between adolescent and adult populations and for longitudinal follow-up into how unmet care needs change from adolescence into adulthood.

Understanding Parental Role in Children's Participation in Decision Making during Hospitalisation: An Ethnographic Study in Malaysia

Introduction

Despite a growing recognition internationally that children have a right to participate in matters that affect their lives, they are not always involved in decision-making processes concerning their health care. There is a lack of information on how parents influence children's participation in this decision making. This study explored the roles parents assume in processes regarding their children's participation in communication exchanges and decision making in a paediatric oncology unit in Malaysia.

Methods

This study adopted a focused ethnography design within a constructivist research paradigm. Participant observations and semi-structured interviews were conducted with 21 parents, 21 children and 19 nurses in a paediatric oncology unit in Malaysia. All observation fieldnotes and interview recordings were transcribed verbatim. A focused ethnographic data analysis technique was performed to analyse the data.

Results

Three themes emerged regarding parents' roles in the communication and decision-making processes involving their children: i) facilitators of communication; ii) communication brokers and iii) communication buffers.

Conclusion

Parents controlled decision-making processes concerning their children, while children preferred and welcomed parents as consultants in the decision-making processes regarding their health care.

Implementing Article 12 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child in health care: a scoping review

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present the results of a scoping review on the implementation of Article12 in health care. The scoping review will provide a summary and overview of the key concepts and published literature on this topic internationally. Article 12 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989) states that children have a right to express their views, to have them heard and for their views to be given due weight in all matters that affect them. Despite increased calls for Article 12 to be given attention in health care, there is little evidence to suggest this has been well implemented and embedded in Australian health-care delivery. The scoping review was undertaken to provide a summary and overview of the key concepts and published literature on this topic internationally.

Design/methodology/approach

A five-step methodological framework described by Arksey and O’Malley (2005) was used to undertake the scoping review. Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis was used as a guideline for undertaking the study selection.

Findings

Children are still not routinely involved in health-care decision-making, are frequently left out of service planning and evaluation and the perception that they lack the capability to make rational decisions persists.

Originality/value

While there has been a focus on research that investigates children’s participation in health-care decision-making in recent years, there is little that directs attention specifically to the implementation of Article 12, particularly in Australian health care. Recommendations are made for further research in these areas.

Bringing personal perspective elicitation to the heart of shared decision-making: A scoping review

OBJECTIVES

Proponents of shared decision-making (SDM) advocate the elicitation of the patient's perspective. This scoping review explores if, and to what extent, the personal perspectives of patients are elicited during a clinical encounter, as part of a SDM process. We define personal perspective elicitation (PPE) as: the disclosure (either elicited by the clinician or spontaneously expressed by the patient) of information related to the patient's personal preferences, values and/or context.

METHODS

A search was conducted in five literature databases from inception dates up to July 2020, to identify empirical studies about SDM (with/without SDM instrument).

RESULTS

The search identified 4562 abstracts; 263 articles were read in full text, resulting in 99 included studies. Studies reported low levels of PPE. Integration of personal perspectives into the conversation or a future care plan was largely absent. The majority of the discussed content related to physical health, while social and psychological topics were mostly unaddressed.

CONCLUSIONS

PPE occurs on a very low level in efforts to achieve SDM according to evaluation studies.

PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS

PPE is advocated but rarely achieved in SDM evaluation studies. Causes should be identified, followed by designing interventions to improve this aspect of SDM.

Elicitation of children's understanding of information in pediatric genetic counseling encounters: A discourse-oriented perspective

Affirmation of children's understanding of information provided in genetic counseling encounters is crucial to obtaining children's informed consent/assent in pediatric genetic counseling encounters. It is also important for the proper management of a genetic condition. Currently, there is a relative scarcity of research on how understanding of complex genetic information by children is elicited in the process of pediatric genetic counseling. In this study, we apply theme-oriented discourse analysis to examine 23 video/audio-recorded genetic counseling encounters in Hong Kong. The encounters involve children aged between 3 and 17 years old who are suspected to have or diagnosed with Sudden Arrhythmic Death Syndrome (SADS). Specifically, we examine a range of communicative strategies that genetic professionals employ to elicit children's understanding of information in this genetic counseling setting. We also examine how children's epistemic status is negotiated between genetic professionals, parents, and children. The study reveals that genetic professionals typically use direct questioning (e.g., "do you understand?" or "do you have any questions?"). Less typical are examples where genetic professionals explore children's epistemic access and invite children to recall information after they deliver it. The study reveals two discourse strategies that genetic professionals and parents employ to justify a child's low epistemic status: (1) construction of "current ignorance" and "future competence" in children and (2) association with a child's character. In the examined counseling encounters, genetic professionals and parents tend to construct a low epistemic status in younger children and allocate the responsibility for understanding relevant information to the parents and the "future" competent children. The study highlights the impact of genetic professionals' and parents' assumptions on children's knowledge and comprehensibility at different ages, and the role that children themselves play in conforming or contesting these assumptions.

Chronically ill children's participation and health outcomes in shared decision-making: a scoping review

Based on the United Nations Conventions on the Rights of the Child (CRC), it is a child's right to participate in all matters concerning its wellbeing. Little is known about chronically and/or critically ill children's participation in pediatric shared decision-making (SDM). We explored medical literature to see if and how these children participate in pediatric SDM. We searched relevant medical databases published between January 2008 and January 2020 for studies targeting children aged 4-18 years old, suffering from a chronic and/or critical disease. We found 9 relevant studies. SDM interventions mostly used were decision aids (n=8), questionnaires for caretakers/parents and children (n=4), and a SDM toolkit (n=2). Perceived involvement in SDM and knowledge increased amongst children, adolescents, and caretakers following these interventions. Decisional conflict measured using the 0-100 point DCS scale (higher scores indicate more decisional conflict) was reduced by 15.9 points in one study (p<0.01) and 17.8 points in another (95%CI: 13.3-22.9). Lower scores were associated with higher satisfaction with the decision aid by children, caretakers, and clinicians.Conclusion: Stakeholders should advocate initiatives to facilitate a child's participation preferences regarding pediatric SDM since decision support tools help chronically ill children to be more involved in SDM as they increase the children's knowledge and satisfaction and reduce decisional conflicts. What is Known: • Decision aids can help improve participation, knowledge, satisfaction, and health outcomes. • Quality and consistency of the information exchange impact quality and outcome of SDM. What is New: • Depending on a child's age, evolving capacities, and communication and participation preferences, more evidence is needed on which tools are suitable for chronically ill children to ensure their preferred participation in pediatric SDM. • Pediatricians adopt healthcare SDM tools and techniques that do not always take into account that a child's right to participate in pediatric SDM including the tendency to use interventions that are not specifically designed for pediatrics.

Interventions to Support Adolescents With Cancer in Decision-Making: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

BACKGROUND

Adolescents have autonomous views and participatory rights. There is increasing support for involving adolescents with cancer in the healthcare decision-making process.

AIMS

The purpose of this study was to synthesize current knowledge to identify major components and outcomes of interventions to enhance shared decision-making (SDM) by adolescents with cancer during and after treatment.

METHODS

Six electronic databases (PubMed, CINHAL, MEDLINE, Cochrane, EBSCO, and Web of Science) were searched from their inceptions to February 2020. Eligibility criteria were intervention studies, studies of interventions to support adolescents with cancer involved in SDM, and studies of patients diagnosed with cancer between 10 and 18 years of age. Data extraction and quality appraisal were conducted by using a standardized data extraction form. Quality appraisal was based on the Cochrane Risk of Bias Tool.

RESULTS

Of 331 citations, five studies with a total of 648 participants aged between 13 and 21 years met inclusion criteria. Interventions included structured sessions held one to three times per week. SDM engagement strategies incorporated weekly assignments, live action videos, brochures, Five Wishes^© advance directives, and follow-up counseling. Treatment preference congruence in adolescent and parent dyads was higher in intervention groups. Meta-analysis was performed on two studies and demonstrated statistically significant improvements in decision quality at 6 months (z = 3.37, p = .001; 95% CI = .174-.657) and 12 months (z = 3.17, p = .002; 95% CI = .150-.633) after SDM interventions in adolescent cancer survivors. No adverse events among patients were found, although anxiety scores increased in families in an intervention group.

LINKING EVIDENCE TO ACTION

This review identified essential components of SDM interventions. Our findings may guide the future design of interventions to support high-quality decision-making by adolescents with cancer. Coaching can educate adolescent cancer survivors on quality decision-making methods and can improve the quality of consequent decisions. More research is needed to determine outcomes of SDM interventions.

Evaluation of the "3 Good Questions" program for shared decision-making in pediatric medicine: a feasibility study

The "3 Good Questions" program was developed to increase shared decision making. The current pilot-study determined the feasibility of these questions to increase shared decision-making in Dutch pediatric medicine. Pre-/postintervention surveys were used to include children (10-18 years) at pediatric outpatient clinics of four hospitals in the Netherlands. After their appointment, two different groups of children completed the questionnaires. Group 1 filled in the survey before the intervention; group 2 completed the survey after active implementation of the "3 Good Questions" program. The primary outcome was to determine the feasibility (reach, applicability). Secondary outcomes were related to patient involvement in healthcare and treatment decisions and decision-making process between child and healthcare professional. In total, 168 and 114 children in groups 1 and 2 (61 vs 63% female, P = 0.68; age 13.3 ± 2.4 vs 13.8 ± 2.4 years, P = 0.72), respectively, completed the questionnaire. In group 2, 44% of children were aware of the "3 Good Questions", of whom 18% posed ≥ 1 of the "3 Good Questions" during their appointment (feasibility). The "3 Good Questions" program led to more shared decision-making (SDM-Q-9: P = < 0.001;95%CI: - 2.43 to - 1.17). The majority of children who have read or heard of the "3 Good Questions" would recommend this program to other children.Conclusion: Implementation of the "3 Good Questions" program seemed feasible, although it is necessary to further explore the implementation of this program at national level as a simple way for children and healthcare professionals to share decisions in practice. What is known • Children have the right to be included in decision-making, and inclusion can improve patient satisfaction and quality of care, and reduce costs. • The "3 Good Questions" program was successfully implemented in adult healthcare to increase shared decision making, and therefore these "3 Good Questions" have been adapted to a child version. What is new • In this pilot study, we found that the implementation of the "3 Good Questions" program to increase shared decision-making in pediatric medicine seemed feasible. Although it is necessary to further explore the implementation of the "3 Good Questions" program at national level as a simple way for children and healthcare professionals to share decisions in practice.

Impact of an Electronic Health Service on Child Participation in Pediatric Oncology Care: Quasiexperimental Study

Background

For children 6-12 years old, there is a shortage of electronic Health (eHealth) services that promote their participation in health care. Therefore, a digital communication tool, called Sisom, was developed to give children a voice in their health care. Children with long-term diseases want to be more involved in their health care and have the right to receive information, be listened to, express their opinions, and participate in decision making in health care. However, the outcomes of using Sisom in practice at pediatric oncology clinics have not been investigated.

Objective

The aim of this study was to investigate children’s participation during appointments with pediatricians at pediatric oncology clinics, with or without the use of the eHealth service Sisom.

Methods

A quasiexperimental design with mixed methods was used. We analyzed 27 filmed appointments with pediatricians for 14 children (8 girls and 6 boys) aged 6-12 years (mean 8.3 years) with a cancer diagnosis. The intervention group consisted of children who used Sisom prior to their appointments with pediatricians at a pediatric oncology clinic, and the control group consisted of children who had appointments with pediatricians at 4 pediatric oncology clinics. Data from observations from the videos were quantitatively and qualitatively analyzed. The quantitative analysis included manual calculations of how many times the pediatricians spoke directly to the children, the proportion of the appointment time that the children were talking, and levels of participation by the children. For the qualitative analysis, we used directed content analysis to analyze the children’s levels of participation guided by a framework based on Shier’s model of participation.

Results

Pediatricians directed a greater proportion of their discussion toward the child in the intervention group (731 occasions) than in the control group (624 occasions), but the proportion of the appointment time the children talked was almost the same for both the intervention and control groups (mean 17.0 minutes vs 17.6 minutes). The levels of participation corresponded to the first three levels of Shier’s participation model: children were listened to, children were supported to express their views, and children’s views were taken into account. The results showed an increased level of participation by the children in the intervention group. Several codes that were found did not fit into any of the existing categories, and a new category was thus formed: children received information.

Conclusions

This study shows that the eHealth service Sisom can increase children’s participation during appointments with health care professionals. Further studies employing a randomized control design focusing on the effects of eHealth services on children’s health outcomes, perceived participation, and cost-effectiveness could make a significant contribution to guiding the implementation of eHealth services in pediatric care.

Quality of health care according to people with Down syndrome, their parents and support staff-A qualitative exploration

Background

People with Down syndrome (PDS) have complex healthcare needs. Little is known about the quality of health care for PDS, let alone how it is appraised by PDS and their caregivers. This study explores the perspectives of PDS, their parents and support staff regarding quality in health care for PDS.

Method

The present authors conducted semi‐structured interviews with 18 PDS and 15 parents, and focus groups with 35 support staff members (of PDS residing in assisted living facilities) in the Netherlands.

Results

According to the participants, healthcare quality entails well‐coordinated health care aligned with other support and care systems, a person‐centred and holistic approach, including respect, trust and provider–patient communication adapted to the abilities of PDS.

Conclusions

Our findings may be used to improve health care for PDS, and provide insight into how health care could match the specific needs of PDS.

The clinical practice guideline palliative care for children and other strategies to enhance shared decision-making in pediatric palliative care; pediatricians' critical reflections

BACKGROUND

Because of practice variation and new developments in palliative pediatric care, the Dutch Association of Pediatrics decided to develop the clinical practice guideline (CPG) palliative care for children. With this guideline, the association also wanted to precipitate an attitude shift towards shared decision-making (SDM) and therefore integrated SDM in the CPG Palliative care for children. The aim was to gain insight if integrating SDM in CPGs can potentially encourage pediatricians to practice SDM. Its objectives were to explore pediatricians' attitudes and thoughts regarding (1) recommendations on SDM in CPGs in general and the guideline Palliative care for children specifically; (2) other SDM enhancing strategies or tools linked to CPGs.

METHODS

Semi-structured face-to-face interviews. Pediatricians (15) were recruited through purposive sampling in three university-based pediatric centers in the Netherlands. The interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim, coded by at least two authors and analyzed with NVivo.

RESULTS

Some pediatricians considered SDM a skill or attitude that cannot be addressed by clinical practice guidelines. According to others, however, clinical practice guidelines could enhance SDM. In case of the guideline Palliative care for children, the recommendations needed to focus more on how to practice SDM, and offer more detailed recommendations, preferring a recommendation stating multiple options. Most interviewed pediatricians felt that patient decisions aids were beneficial to patients, and could ensure that all topics relevant to the patient are covered, even topics the pediatrician might not consider him or herself, or deems less important. Regardless of the perceived benefit, some pediatricians preferred providing the information themselves instead of using a patient decision aid.

CONCLUSIONS

For clinical practice guidelines to potentially enhance SDM, guideline developers should avoid blanket recommendations in the case of preference sensitive choices, and SDM should not be limited to recommendations on non-treatment decisions. Furthermore, preference sensitive recommendations are preferably linked with patient decision aids.

Parents' experiences of an e-health intervention implemented in pediatric healthcare: a qualitative study

BACKGROUND

The growing field of participation in healthcare has the potential to provide a number of benefits for children, patients, healthcare professionals and also the healthcare systems. According to the Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), children have the right to participate in their own healthcare and make their voice heard. Children's opportunities for understanding their conditions, sharing their views and participating in decisions regarding their care depend on healthcare professionals but also on parents' ability to communicate and include children. E-health solutions can remove barriers to children's communication with healthcare professionals. The aim of this study was to explore parents' perspectives on the outcomes of an e-health solution, Sisom, used by children during healthcare appointments.

METHODS

The empirical data is based on interviews with 16 parents. In the present study constructivist, grounded theory was chosen as the method.

RESULTS

The theory of enhancing participation, by orientating communication about healthcare towards the voice of the child instead of the parents, summarizes the process of how the outcome of Sisom for children lead to enhanced participation, by making the child the main actor and an agent in his/her own healthcare. The facilitators for achieving participation in Sisom were four interrelated outcomes; engaging, voice-guarding, raising awareness and integrity preserving. In addition to generating increased participation, it emerged that the use of Sisom also initiated a process, which was evident in all four subcategories that facilitated the child in coping with the experience of having an illness.

CONCLUSIONS

We conclude, that Sisom orientated communication about healthcare towards the voice of the child instead of the parents as well as including the child in the dialogue with the healthcare professional and thus increasing the child's participation and human rights.

A descriptive model of shared decision making derived from routine implementation in clinical practice ('Implement-SDM'): Qualitative study

OBJECTIVE

Research is needed to understand how Shared Decision-Making (SDM) is enacted in routine clinical settings. We aimed to 1) describe the process of SDM between clinicians and patients; 2) examine how well the SDM process compares to a prescriptive model of SDM, and 3) propose a descriptive model based on observed SDM in routine practice.

METHODS

Patients with chronic kidney disease and early stage breast cancer were recruited consecutively via Cardiff and Vale University Health Board (UK) teams. Consultations were audio-recorded, transcribed and thematically analysed.

RESULTS

Seventy-six consultations were observed: 26 pre-dialysis consultations and two consultations each for 25 breast cancer patients. Key stages of the 'Three Talk Model' were observed. However, we also observed more elements and greater complexity: a distinct preparation phase; tailored and evolving integrative option conversation; patients and clinicians developing 'informed preferences'; distributed and multi-stage decisions; and a more open-ended planning discussion. Use of decision aids was limited.

CONCLUSION

A more complex picture was observed compared with previous portrayals in current theoretical models.

PRACTICE IIMPLICATIONS

The model can provide a basis for future training and initiatives to promote SDM, and tackle the gap between what is advocated in policy, but rarely achieved in practice.

Ability of observer and self-report measures to capture shared decision-making in clinical practice in the UK: a mixed-methods study

OBJECTIVES

To examine how observer and self-report measures of shared decision-making (SDM) evaluate the decision-making activities that patients and clinicians undertake in routine consultations.

DESIGN

Multi-method study using observational and self-reported measures of SDM and qualitative analysis.

SETTING

Breast care and predialysis teams who had already implemented SDM.

PARTICIPANTS

Breast care consultants, clinical nurse specialists and patients who were making decisions about treatment for early-stage breast cancer. Predialysis clinical nurse specialists and patients who needed to make dialysis treatment decisions.

METHODS

Consultations were audio recorded, transcribed and thematically analysed. SDM was measured using Observer OPTION-5 and a dyadic SureScore self-reported measure.

RESULTS

Twenty-two breast and 21 renal consultations were analysed. SureScore indicated that clinicians and patients felt SDM was occurring, but scores showed ceiling effects for most participants, making differentiation difficult. There was mismatch between SureScore and OPTION-5 score data, the latter showing that each consultation lacked at least some elements of SDM. Highest scoring items using OPTION-5 were 'incorporating patient preferences into decisions' for the breast team (mean 18.5, range 12.5-20, SD 2.39) and 'eliciting patient preferences to options' for the renal team (mean 16.15, range 10-20, SD 3.48). Thematic analysis identified that the SDM encounter is difficult to measure because decision-making is often distributed across encounters and time, with multiple people, it is contextually adapted and can involve multiple decisions.

CONCLUSIONS

Self-reported measures can broadly indicate satisfaction with SDM, but do not tell us about the quality of the interaction and are unlikely to capture the multi-staged nature of the SDM process. Observational measures provide an indication of the extent to which elements of SDM are present in the observed consultation, but cannot explain why some elements might not be present or scored lower. Findings are important when considering measuring SDM in practice.

Shared decision-making in general practice: an observational study comparing 2007 with 2015

BACKGROUND

Shared decision-making (SDM) is, largely, espoused as the preferred model for making decisions in everyday health care. Studies exploring the application of SDM in primary care practice are still lacking.

OBJECTIVES

This study explores how GPs involve their patients in decision-making, if application of SDM has increased over time (2007-15), and what factors are associated with it.

METHODS

We investigated the application of SDM by Dutch GPs by analysing a random set of real-life video-recorded consultations collected in 2007 (n = 50) and 2015 (n = 50). SDM was assessed by observing patient involvement in decision making (OPTION), a reliable and valid instrument measuring the extent to which clinicians involve patients in decision-making by coding 12 behavioural items. In addition, GPs and patients completed questionnaires about their background characteristics. The potential determinants for application of SDM by Dutch GPs (including year of measurement, sex and age of patients and GPs, the nature of complaints, consultation duration and the type of decision discussed) were analysed using multilevel analysis [with patients (Level 1) nested within GPs (Level 2)].

RESULTS

In 2015, GPs applied SDM more often compared with 2007 according to OPTION. In consultations with older patients, there is less application of SDM by GPs.

CONCLUSIONS

Although application of SDM by Dutch GPs has increased, low overall SDM scores still leave room for improvement. GPs should elicit the patient's preferred role in the decision-making process at any time, in particular in consultations with older patients.

Information and participation preferences and needs of non-Western ethnic minority cancer patients and survivors: A systematic review of the literature

OBJECTIVE

To provide an overview of information and participation preferences and needs of non-Western ethnic minority cancer patients living in Western countries.

METHODS

A systematic literature review was conducted using the databases PsycINFO, PubMed, CINAHL, and EMBASE. Thematic analysis was carried out to synthesize data, allowing for identification of important themes and synthesis of both qualitative and quantitative studies.

RESULTS

Forty-four papers were included. Non- Western ethnic minority cancer patients/survivors have high information preferences and needs regarding topics ranging from diagnosis to treatment and from prevention to the healthcare system. Younger, female, and unmarried patients/survivors, and patients with better language proficiency reported higher information preferences. Latin-American and African-American patients/survivors primarily prefer shared or active participation. Asian and Middle-Eastern patients/survivors prefer primarily passive participation. Younger patients, and those with a higher level of education and acculturation were more likely to prefer active or shared participation.

CONCLUSION

Further (quantitative) research on factors associated with patients' preferences is needed in order to better understand the underlying reasons of information and participation preferences and needs of diverse non-Western ethnic minority cancer patients.

PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS

To better fulfil ethnic minority patients'/survivors' preferences and needs healthcare providers should elaborate upon these and tailor their information- provision accordingly.

Barriers and facilitators of pediatric shared decision-making: a systematic review

BACKGROUND

Shared decision-making (SDM) is rarely implemented in pediatric practice. Pediatric health decision-making differs from that of adult practice. Yet, little is known about the factors that influence the implementation of pediatric shared decision-making (SDM). We synthesized pediatric SDM barriers and facilitators from the perspectives of healthcare providers (HCP), parents, children, and observers (i.e., persons who evaluated the SDM process, but were not directly involved).

METHODS

We conducted a systematic review guided by the Ottawa Model of Research Use (OMRU). We searched MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, CINAHL, PubMed, and PsycINFO (inception to March 2017) and included studies that reported clinical pediatric SDM barriers and/or facilitators from the perspective of HCPs, parents, children, and/or observers. We considered all or no comparison groups and included all study designs reporting original data. Content analysis was used to synthesize barriers and facilitators and categorized them according to the OMRU levels (i.e., decision, innovation, adopters, relational, and environment) and participant types (i.e., HCP, parents, children, and observers). We used the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool to appraise study quality.

RESULTS

Of 20,008 identified citations, 79 were included. At each OMRU level, the most frequent barriers were features of the options (decision), poor quality information (innovation), parent/child emotional state (adopter), power relations (relational), and insufficient time (environment). The most frequent facilitators were low stake decisions (decision), good quality information (innovation), agreement with SDM (adopter), trust and respect (relational), and SDM tools/resources (environment). Across participant types, the most frequent barriers were insufficient time (HCPs), features of the options (parents), power imbalances (children), and HCP skill for SDM (observers). The most frequent facilitators were good quality information (HCP) and agreement with SDM (parents and children). There was no consistent facilitator category for observers. Overall, study quality was moderate with quantitative studies having the highest ratings and mixed-method studies having the lowest ratings.

CONCLUSIONS

Numerous diverse and interrelated factors influence SDM use in pediatric clinical practice. Our findings can be used to identify potential pediatric SDM barriers and facilitators, guide context-specific barrier and facilitator assessments, and inform interventions for implementing SDM in pediatric practice.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

PROSPERO CRD42015020527.

Advancing the field of communication research in pediatric oncology: A systematic review of the literature analyzing medical dialogue

Historically, communication research in pediatric oncology has relied on surveys and interviews, resulting in cross-sectional and retrospective studies constrained by selection, recognition, and recall biases. This systematic review identifies and synthesizes the published literature analyzing primary data from recorded conversations between pediatric oncologists, patients with cancer, and their families, with the following objectives: (1) to identify the extent and content of the evidence base, (2) to describe methodological strategies utilized in the analysis of recorded medical dialogue, (3) to aggregate salient findings, and (4) to generate recommendations for future prospective research related to analysis of medical dialogue in pediatric oncology.

Involving Youth With a Chronic Illness in Decision-making: Highlighting the Role of Providers

Decision-making is important in the context of pediatric chronic illness because children and families need to make decisions about burdensome and complex treatments on a regular basis, and children must eventually learn how to make such decisions independently. Research related to children's decision-making in medical settings has been focused primarily on cognitive aspects of decision-making, such as understanding and capacity. The concept of decision-making involvement (DMI) recognizes that children can be involved in decision-making in multiple ways, regardless of capacity, and that parents and health care providers play a critical role in supporting children as they learn to make decisions on their own. Providers can facilitate DMI during medical encounters by asking for the children's opinions and concerns, encouraging turn-taking, soliciting questions, asking for information directly from the children, and checking that the children understand what has been said. Efforts to involve children send the message that the youth perspective is important and set the expectation for increased participation over time. Providers can also support parent-child decision-making about illness management at home by guiding parents as to how best to involve children in decisions about illness management, identifying areas in which more or less parental guidance and support are needed, and assisting youth in planning ahead for decision-making about illness management in high-risk situations. Additional research is needed to identify why children's DMI in medical settings remains low, develop and evaluate strategies to enhance DMI, and test the effects of DMI on health-related behaviors and outcomes over time.

An expanded framework to define and measure shared decision-making in dialogue: A 'top-down' and 'bottom-up' approach

OBJECTIVES

We aimed to develop a comprehensive, descriptive framework to measure shared decision making (SDM) in clinical encounters.

METHODS

We combined a top-down (theoretical) approach with a bottom-up approach based on audio-recorded dialogue to identify all communication processes related to decision making. We coded 55 pediatric otolaryngology visits using the framework and report interrater reliability.

RESULTS

We identified 14 clinician behaviors and 5 patient behaviors that have not been previously described, and developed a new SDM framework that is descriptive (what does happen) rather than normative (what should happen). Through the bottom-up approach we identified three broad domains not present in other SDM frameworks: socioemotional support, understandability of clinician dialogue, and recommendation-giving. We also specify the ways in which decision-making roles are assumed implicitly rather than discussed explicitly. Interrater reliability was >75% for 92% of the coded behaviors.

CONCLUSION/PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS

This SDM framework allows for a more expansive understanding and analysis of how decision making takes place in clinical encounters, including new domains and behaviors not present in existing measures. We hope that this new framework will bring attention to a broader conception of SDM and allow researchers to further explore the new domains and behaviors identified.

In search of quality indicators for Down syndrome healthcare: a scoping review

BACKGROUND

The medical care chain around Down syndrome (DS) is complex, with many multidisciplinary challenges. The current quality of care is unknown. Outcome-oriented quality indicators have the potential to improve medical practice and evaluate whether innovations are successful. This is particularly interesting for the evolving care for people with DS and intellectual disabilities (ID). The aim of this study was to identify existing indicators for medical DS care, by reviewing the literature.

METHODS

We systematically searched six databases (PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, CINAHL, PsycINFO, Google Scholar) for studies concerning the development and implementation of quality indicators for DS and/or ID care, published until February 1st 2015. The scoping review method was used, including systematic data extraction and stakeholder consultation.

RESULTS

We identified 13 studies concerning quality indicators for ID care that obtained data originating from questionnaires (patient/family/staff), medical files and/or national databases. We did not find any indicator sets specifically for DS care. Consulted stakeholders did not come up with additional indicator sets. Existing indicators for ID care predominantly focus on support services. Indicators in care for people with ID targeting medical care are scarce. Of the 70 indicators within the 13 indicator sets, 10% are structure indicators, 34% process, 32% outcome and 24% mixed. Ten of the 13 sets include indicators on the WHO quality dimensions 'patient-centeredness', 'effectiveness' and 'efficiency' of care. 'Accessibility' is covered by nine sets, 'equitability' by six, and 'safety' by four. Most studies developed indicators in a multidisciplinary manner in a joint effort with all relevant stakeholders; some used focus groups to include people with ID.

CONCLUSION

To our knowledge, this is the first review that searched for studies on quality indicators in DS care. Hence, the study contributes to existing knowledge on DS care as well as on measuring quality of care. Future research should address the development of a compact set of quality indicators for the DS care chain as a whole. Indicators should preferably be patient-centred and outcome-oriented, including user perspectives, while developed in a multidisciplinary way to achieve successful implementation.

Interventions for promoting participation in shared decision-making for children with cancer

BACKGROUND

This is an update of the Cochrane systematic review of shared decision-making (SMD) making published in 2013. Children's rights to have their views heard in matters that affect their lives are now well established since the publication of the UN Convention treaty (1989). Children with cancer generally prefer to be involved in decision-making and consider it important that they have the opportunity to take part in decision-making concerning their health care, even in end-of-life decisions. There is considerable support for involving children in healthcare decision-making at a level commensurate with their experience, age and abilities. Thus, healthcare professionals and parents need to know how they should involve children in decision-making and what interventions are most effective in promoting SDM for children with cancer.

OBJECTIVES

To examine the effects of SDM interventions on the process of SDM for children with cancer who are aged four to 18 years.

SEARCH METHODS

We searched the following sources for the review: Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Studies (CENTRAL) (the Cochrane Library 2016, Issue 1); PubMed (NLM) (1946 to February 2016); Embase (Ovid) (1974 to February 2016); CINAHL (EBSCO) (1982 to February 2016); ERIC (ProQuest) (1966 to February 2016); PsycINFO (EBSCO) (1806 to February 2016); BIOSIS (Thomson Reuters) (1980 to December 2009 - subscription ceased at that date); ProQuest Dissertations and Theses (1637 to February 2016); and Sociological Abstracts (ProQuest) (1952 to February 2016). In addition we searched the reference lists of relevant articles and review articles and the following conference proceedings (2005 up to and including 2015): American Academy on Communication in Healthcare (AACH), European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO), European CanCer Organisation (ECCO), European Association for Communication in Healthcare (EACH), International Conference on Communication in Healthcare (ICCH), International Shared Decision Making Conference (ISDM), Annual Conference of the International Society for Paediatric Oncology (SIOP) and Annual Scientific Meeting of the Society for Medical Decision Making (SMDM). We scanned the ISRCTN (International Standard Randomised Controlled Trial Number) register and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Register for ongoing trials on 29 February 2016.

SELECTION CRITERIA

For this update, we included randomised controlled trials (RCTs) and controlled clinical trials (CCTs) of SDM interventions for children with cancer aged four to 18 years. The types of decisions included were: treatment, health care and research participation decisions. The primary outcome was SDM as measured with any validated scale.

DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS

Two review authors undertook the searches, and three review authors independently assessed the studies obtained. We contacted study authors for additional information.

MAIN RESULTS

No studies met the inclusion criteria, and hence no analysis could be undertaken.

AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS

No conclusions can be made on the effects of interventions to promote SDM for children with cancer aged four to 18 years. This review has highlighted the dearth of high-quality quantitative research on interventions to promote participation in SDM for children with cancer. There are many potential reasons for the lack of SDM intervention studies with children. Attitudes towards children's participation are slowly changing in society and such changes may take time to be translated or adopted in healthcare settings. The priority may be on developing interventions that promote children's participation in communication interactions since information-sharing is a prerequisite for SDM. Restricting this review to RCTs was a limitation and extending the review to non-randomised studies (NRS) may have produced more evidence. For this update, we included only RCTs and CCTs. Clearly more research is needed.

Redesign and Validation of Sisom, an Interactive Assessment and Communication Tool for Children With Cancer

Background

Children with cancer undergo intensive and long treatment periods that expose them and their families to a number of difficult physical, mental, and social challenges. Empowering children by actively involving them in their care can help them to cope with these challenges. It can, however, be difficult for children to be involved and talk about their illness experiences in a “traditional” conversation with health care professionals, especially for younger children. Sisom (Norwegian acronym “Si det som det er” or “Tell it how it is”) is an interactive computer-based assessment and communication tool to give children (aged 6-12 years) with cancer a “voice” in their care. Because of technological advances and widespread use of mobile devices Sisom had to be redesigned to better meet the needs of children of today.

Objective

To redesign Sisom for use on mobile devices and to validate and adapt it for use in a Swedish population of children with cancer.

Methods

A user-experience design was used. Content adaptation included forward-backward translation by Swedish and Norwegian translators. Healthy children (n=5), children with experiences of cancer treatment (n=5) and their parents (n=5), and pediatric nurses (n=2) were then involved in culturally adapting Sisom to the Swedish context. The iterative low- and high-fidelity evaluation was supported by a think aloud method, semistructured interviews, and drawings to capture children’s views of Sisom. The redesign and evaluation continued until no further changes or improvements were identified by the participants or the researchers.

Results

Children, parents, and pediatric nurses offered many suggestions for improvements to the original version in terms of content, aesthetics, and usability of Sisom. The most significant change that emerged through user input was a modification that entailed not using problem-focused statements in the assessment items. The parents and pediatric nurses considered the revised assessment items to be general and less diagnosis specific. The evaluation of aesthetics resulted in brighter colors and more positive and exciting details in the animations. The evaluation of usability included improvements of the verbal instructions on how to navigate in Sisom 2, and also that the answers to assessment items in Sisom 2 should be saved to provide the children with the option to pause and to continue answering the remaining assessment items at a later stage.

Conclusions

Overall, this paper describes the process of using user-experience design with children in order to redesign and validate an interactive assessment and communication tool and how the outcomes of this process resulted in a new version, Sisom 2. All participants confirmed the usability and qualities of using the final version. Future research should be directed toward the implementation of Sisom 2 in clinical practice and to evaluate outcomes from individual and organizational levels.