Shared decision-making and medicolegal aspects: Delivering high-quality cancer care in India

Dinesh C Doval, Prabhash Kumar, Vineet Talwar, Ashok K Vaid, Chirag Desai, Vikas Ostwal, Palanki S Dattatreya, Vijay Agarwal, Vaibhav SaxenaIndian Journal of Palliative Care 2020 26(4):405-410 It is often difficult for people with cancer to make decisions for their care. The aim of this review is to understand the importance of shared decisionmaking (SDM) in Indian clinical scenario and identify the gaps when compared to practices in the Western world. A systematic search (2000-2019) was executed in Medline and Google Scholar using predefined keywords. Of the approximate 400 articles retrieved, 43 articles (Indian: 5; Western: 38) were selected for literature review. Literature review revealed the paucity of information on SDM in India compared to the Western world data. This may contribute to patientreported physical or psychological harms, life disruptions, or unnecessary financial costs. Western world data demonstrate the involvement and sharing of information by both patient and physician, collective efforts of the two to build consensus for preferred treatment. In India, involvement of patients in the planning for treatment is largely limited to tertiary care centers, academic institutes, or only when the cost of therapy is high. In addition, cultural beliefs and prejudices impact the extent of participation and engagement of a patient in disease management. Communication failures have been found to strongly correlate with the medicolegal malpractice litigations. Resear...
Source: Indian Journal of Palliative Care - Category: Palliative Care Authors: Source Type: research