Patient Decision Aids in Pelvic Floor Surgery
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Impact of Patient Decision Aids (PDA) on shared decision making and patient satisfaction prior to pelvic floor surgery
IRAS ID
313282
Contact name
Swati Jha
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 0 months, 0 days
Research summary
Patient decision aids (PDAs) are tools that have been used in a variety of healthcare settings to help people make decisions about their care. They provide information about different treatment options available and the research evidence about the potential risks and benefits to support the patient reach the decision that is best for them. They have been found to significantly improve the decision making process for patients in other areas of healthcare.
Pelvic floor muscle weakness can cause pelvic organ prolapse (POP) and stress urinary incontinence (SUI). These cause symptoms in 25% of women and 12% choose to undergo surgical treatment. Some of these procedures include the use of a synthetic mesh and, following concern from patients and regulators regarding side effects, the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE) recommended the use of a PDA to support people making decisions about their treatment. These PDAs were introduced without trials to assess their usefulness.
This study aims to assess whether patients find these PDAs helpful when making decisions about their treatment.
A Decision Conflict Score (DCS) will be used. This is a short survey conducted in clinic once the patient has worked through the PDA with the doctor as part of standard care. It assesses different aspects of the decision making process and each survey will generate a score - the higher the score the more conflicted the person is about their decision.
Patients will also be invited to a semi-structured interview to assess how they found using the PDA and if there were any areas they felt could be improved.
In combination these will allow validation of the PDAs as they are now and provide feedback to NICE if changes are needed.
REC name
London - Surrey Borders Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
22/PR/0414
Date of REC Opinion
12 Apr 2022
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion