The University of Colorado’s health system (UCHealth) is making significant strides in empowering patients to make informed healthcare decisions. With initiatives focused on patient decision-support tools, the goal is to align medical treatments with patient values, preferences, and life goals.
Empowering Patient Decision-Making
The Importance of Patient Involvement
In modern healthcare, expanded medical capability necessitates the crucial involvement of patients in their treatment decisions. This responsibility is particularly critical for patients with severe or chronic illnesses. Allowing patients to actively choose their treatment plans fosters a sense of autonomy, ensuring that their choices cater not only to their medical needs but also to their personal values and quality of life preferences. Creating a healthcare environment that respects and accommodates these preferences plays a pivotal role in enhancing patient satisfaction and outcomes.
This ethos forms the bedrock of UCHealth’s new initiative, which seeks to deploy effective decision aids and tools aimed at improving patient participation in their own care. Such efforts can be instrumental in addressing the complexities of medical decision-making, especially when patients confront daunting choices involving life-altering treatments. By equipping patients with the necessary information and supportive tools, healthcare providers can foster a collaborative decision-making process that honors patients’ lived experiences and unique preferences.
UCHealth’s New Initiative
UCHealth’s initiative, inspired by the Colorado Program for Patient-Centered Decisions, is a comprehensive effort aimed at the creation and dissemination of efficient decision aids. This initiative’s primary goal is to offer patients tangible tools that help them navigate their healthcare options more confidently and knowledgeably. Professor Daniel Matlock of the University of Colorado School of Medicine has been a cornerstone in this movement, leveraging his extensive experience to develop impactful tools such as the iDecide platform.
iDecide offers a range of aids covering medical areas from heart conditions to colon cancer and hospice care. By providing patients with accessible, understandable information, these aids demystify complex medical procedures and decisions. Empirical evidence has shown that patients equipped with decision-support tools feel more confident in their choices and are more likely to select treatments that align with their goals and life contexts. This patient-centric focus enables a more personalized healthcare approach, ultimately leading to better health outcomes and patient empowerment.
The Anschutz Acceleration Initiative
Focus on Heart Transplants
Under the Anschutz Acceleration Initiative (AAI), UCHealth is focusing on developing decision aids for heart transplant candidates. The project, spearheaded by Dr. Larry Allen and supported by Dr. Colleen McIlvennan, Laura Peters, and Mikayla Viny, centers on creating comprehensive pamphlets and visual aids that elucidate transplant procedures, risks, and benefits. The goal is to provide heart transplant candidates with clear, concise information to help them make informed decisions that reflect their values and preferences.
This project builds upon successful aids designed for left-ventricular assist device (LVAD) implantation. The inclusion of patient inputs and rigorous iterations ensure these tools address long-term procedural risks, recovery expectations, and mental health support. By providing patients with transparent insights into what a heart transplant entails, including the potential benefits, risks, and lifestyle implications, UCHealth aims to support patients in making decisions that align with their life goals and health outcomes. Additionally, these aids are designed to foster meaningful conversations between patients and healthcare providers, further enhancing the decision-making process.
Alzheimer’s Disease and Dementia Care
For patients with Alzheimer’s and related dementias, the development of a comprehensive decision-support roadmap is underway. This tool, led by Dr. Daniel Matlock, Dr. Laura Scherer, and Dr. Channing Tate, aims to assist caregivers and patients alike. Drawing inspiration from a previously successful model for coronary artery disease patients created by Scherer, the dementia roadmap encompasses various aspects of the disease process. These include educating patients and caregivers on the types and progression of dementia, safety considerations, medication management, and self-care practices.
The multifaceted approach ensures that caregivers and patients receive holistic education and support, helping them navigate the ongoing changes in cognition and capabilities associated with dementia. A significant component of this roadmap is empowering caregivers with the knowledge and resources needed to make informed, compassionate decisions that honor the patient’s dignity and preferences. Moreover, the roadmap emphasizes the importance of early planning and proactive decision-making, which can significantly ease the emotional and logistical challenges faced by families dealing with dementia.
Inclusivity and Cultural Sensitivity
Spanish-Speaking Patient Panel
A hallmark of UCHealth’s projects is the inclusion of diverse patient backgrounds, addressing specific community needs with cultural sensitivity. Professor Monica Pérez Jolles from ACCORDS leads a Spanish-speaking patient panel, which caters to the unique language-specific and cultural nuances encountered by Spanish-speaking patients. This focus on inclusivity ensures that decision aids are accessible and relevant to all communities, thus broadening the reach and impact of these tools.
By involving Spanish-speaking patients in the design and development process, UCHealth ensures that the aids are not only translated but also culturally adapted to resonate with the patients’ values and experiences. This approach exemplifies a commitment to reducing health disparities and promoting equitable access to decision-support resources. The panel’s work includes creating materials that are not only linguistically accurate but also culturally appropriate, addressing potential barriers to comprehension and engagement.
Patient-Centric Focus
UCHealth places a strong emphasis on creating tools that respect and accommodate diverse patient needs while ensuring the aids remain practical and user-friendly in clinical settings. The development team strives to maintain a balance between comprehensive content and ease of use, recognizing that overly complex tools may deter patient engagement. By focusing on simplicity and clarity, UCHealth aims to empower patients from all walks of life to participate actively in their healthcare decisions.
Additionally, the development of user-friendly interfaces and accessible formats is paramount to the tools’ success. This patient-centric focus underscores the importance of designing aids that seamlessly integrate into everyday clinical practice, enhancing the patient experience without imposing additional burdens on healthcare providers. By fostering a collaborative and inclusive design process, UCHealth ensures that the resulting tools are both effective and sustainable, supporting long-term patient engagement and improved health outcomes.
Proactive Development Strategy
Carotid Artery Stenting Aids
Anticipating potential mandates from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, UCHealth has adopted a proactive approach in creating decision aids for carotid artery stenting. Led by Dr. Christopher Knoepke and neurologist Dr. Michelle Fullard, this project aims to develop a comprehensive tool that addresses various treatment options, including endarterectomy and medical therapy. The aids are tailored to cater to both symptomatic and asymptomatic patients, reflecting the distinct needs and experiences of each group.
Support materials include detailed discussions on treatment options, procedures, recovery expectations, and long-term management. By equipping patients with thorough, comprehensible information, these aids help patients ask critical questions and make informed decisions about their treatment paths. This proactive strategy not only anticipates future regulatory requirements but also exemplifies UCHealth’s commitment to patient-centered care. By providing early, thorough education and support, the aids empower patients to make well-informed decisions that align with their health goals and preferences.
Primary Care for Chronic Conditions
For patients with chronic conditions, UCHealth’s initiative, led by Dr. Amy Huebschmann and Dr. Russell Glasgow, focuses on creating tools to help patients prioritize health risks and goals. Responding to the National Academy of Medicine’s call for a more holistic approach to patient health, these tools integrate multiple health concerns, lifestyle factors, and social determinants into a coherent decision-making framework. The aim is to provide chronic condition patients with comprehensive resources that address their unique health needs and life circumstances.
This holistic approach ensures that patients can navigate the complexities of managing chronic conditions effectively. The tools are designed to facilitate conversations between patients and healthcare providers, enabling a collaborative approach to care that respects the patient’s values and preferences. By focusing on holistic health and incorporating a broad range of factors, UCHealth aims to improve patient outcomes and enhance the overall quality of care for those living with chronic conditions.
Technological Integration
Integration with Electronic Health Records
A key objective of UCHealth’s initiative is the integration of decision-support tools into the UCHealth Epic electronic health record system. This seamless interface aims to optimize consultation times and improve decision outcomes by ensuring that both clinicians and patients have easy access to relevant information during healthcare visits. By embedding decision aids within the electronic health record, the initiative enhances the utility and accessibility of these tools, promoting their widespread adoption.
Integrating decision aids into the Epic system allows for a more efficient patient-clinician interaction, reducing the time spent on information retrieval and enabling more focused, meaningful conversations about treatment options. Additionally, this integration supports continuity of care, ensuring that patients’ preferences and values are consistently considered across different healthcare settings. By enhancing the flow of information, UCHealth aims to improve the overall quality of patient care and support informed decision-making at every stage of the healthcare journey.
Overcoming Implementation Barriers
The University of Colorado’s health system known as UCHealth is making remarkable progress in empowering patients to make well-informed healthcare choices. By focusing on patient decision-support tools, UCHealth aims to ensure that medical treatments align with the individual values, preferences, and life objectives of each patient. These initiatives are designed to give patients the knowledge and confidence to participate actively in their healthcare decisions.
One of the primary goals of UCHealth is to bridge the gap between patients and healthcare providers, fostering an environment where communication is clear and patients feel genuinely heard. By doing so, UCHealth ensures that medical practices are personalized and in harmony with what patients truly value in their lives.
In addition to decision-support tools, UCHealth is also investing in education and resources that help patients understand their options. This includes detailed explanations of potential treatments, risks, and benefits, as well as support in navigating complex medical terminology and procedures.
Overall, UCHealth’s commitment extends beyond just treating ailments; it’s about providing holistic care that considers the whole person. By prioritizing patient values and preferences in the healthcare process, UCHealth is setting a new standard for patient-centered care, making sure that every health decision made contributes positively to the patient’s quality of life.
