Assessing the relevance and implementation of patient-centredness from the patients’ perspective in Germany: results of a Delphi study

Abstract

ObjectivePatient-centredness (PC) has particularly grown in relevance in health services research as well as in politics and there has been much research on its conceptualisation. However, conceptual work neglected the patients’ perspective. Thus, it remains unclear which dimensions of PC matter most to patients. This study aims to assess relevance and current degree of implementation of PC from the perspective of chronically ill patients in Germany.MethodsWe conducted a Delphi study. Patients were recruited throughout Germany using community-based strategies (eg, newspapers and support groups). In round 1, patients rated relevance and implementation of 15 dimensions of PC anonymously. In round 2, patients received results of round 1 and were asked to re-rate their own results. Participants had to have at least one of the following chronic diseases: cancer, cardiovascular disease, mental disorder or musculoskeletal disorder. Furthermore, patients had to be at least 18 years old and had to give informed consent prior to participation.Results226 patients participated in round 1, and 214 patients in round 2. In both rounds, all 15 dimensions were rated highly relevant, but currently insufficiently implemented. Most relevant dimensions included ‘patient safety’, ‘access to care’ and ‘patient information’. Due to small sizes of subsamples between chronic disease groups, differences could not be computed. For the other subgroups (eg, single disease vs multi-morbidity), there were no major differences.ConclusionThis is one of the first studies assessing PC from patients’ perspective in Germany. We showed that patients consider every dimension of PC relevant, but currently not well implemented. Our results can be used to foster PC healthcare delivery and to develop patient-reported experience measures to assess PC of healthcare in Germany.

How the Use of a Patient-Accessible Health Record Contributes to Patient-Centered Care: Scoping Review

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What do patients expect? Assessing patient-centredness from the patients’ perspective: an interview study

“…This study was conducted within an explanatory sequential study design 21 as follow-up to the Delphi study with patients. 19 Sampling, recruitment and data collection Participants were invited to participate via convenience sampling. Participants were eligible if they were at least 18 years of age and belonged to one of four chronic disease groups (cancer, mental disorders, cardiovascular diseases and musculoskeletal disorders).…”

Personalized Image-Guided Therapies for Local Malignencies: Interdisciplinary Options for Interventional Radiology and Interventional Radiotherapy

“…Although both terms are often used synonymously, the distinction between precision medicine, which is directed against individual gene mutations, responsible for the development and growth of a specific tumor, and personalized medicine, which stands for a holistic view of the individual constellation and involves the patient as an equal partner in the decision-making process, is essential. The Delphi-study, published 2019, assessed the relevance and the implementation of patient-centeredness (PC) from the patient´s perspective in Germany ( 38 ). The results of the study paint a worrying picture: many physicians make decisions without openly discussing treatment alternatives with their patients, even though the interests of their patients are actually very important to them.…”