Publisher's Synopsis
Seminar paper from the year 2004 in the subject Psychology - Consulting, Therapy, grade: 1.7, Free University of Berlin, 13 entries in the bibliography, language: English, abstract: Multiple-Criteria Decision Anyalysis (MCDA) can serve as one mean to foster the empowerment of patients in clinical contexts. This paper introduces MCDA as a method to incorporate the expertise of the physician and the values of the patient to reach "informed consent" in therapy decisions. The physician thereby does not simply give advice ("Advice Giving and Taking"), but works together with the patient to find a suitable therapy solution. Firstly, the paternalistic, the expert and the shared decision-making approach in the clinical context are compared. Secondly, two decision-analytic methods are applied to a therapy decision. A decision-tree model is useD to for a simple eye surgery decision. The more applicable Multiple-Criteria Decision Analysis is applied to solve a pregnancy prevention decision. Finally, the relevance of a qualitative MCDA approach in clinical contexts is discussed.
