The aim of this article was to determine the congruence between patients' preferred style of clinical decision-making and the style they typically experienced, and whether this congruence was related to the socioeconomic status and/or perceived quality of care provided by the respondent's regular physician. A cross-sectional survey of the American public using computer-assisted telephone interviews was used. Three thousand two hundred and nine interviews were completed (completion rate 72%). Sixty-two per cent of respondents preferred shared decision-making , 28% preferred consumerism and 9% preferred paternalism. Seventy per cent experienced their preferred style of clinical decision-making. Experiencing a preferred style was associated with high income and having a regular doctor who was perceived to provide excellent or very good care. Both socio-economic status and having a regular doctor whom the respondent rated highly were independently associated with patients' experience of their preferred style of clinical decision-making. Systems that promote continuity of care and the development of an ongoing doctor-patient relationship can promote equity in healthcare by helping patients experience a preferred style of clinical decision-making.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0277953607001645?via%3Dihub