Implementation of Shared Decision Making to Improve Person- and Family-Centred Care

The healthcare system is undergoing a paradigm shift toward person- and family-centred care. While this is a critical priority, it will be challenging to put into practice. One strategy to implement this change is shared decision-making (SDM), a process that supports patients and providers to discuss the risks and benefits of options, clarify preferences, and make choices based on their informed values. Knowledge translation and implementation science (KT/IS) are key approaches for accelerating this system change.

To advance the science of implementing evidence into policy and practice, I will implement and assess evidence-based SDM tools in routine primary care, focusing on maternal health.

Key objectives include to:

• Investigate factors contributing to successful implementation of SDM tools in routine care,
• Adapt, implement, and assess health care professional training to support uptake of SDM,
• Investigate how documentary film can work as a method of knowledge translation to support patients’ informed choices, and
• Evaluate partnerships between researchers and policy makers to catalyze the implementation of SDM.

This research will be used to advance person- and family-centred care in maternal health and in primary care more broadly.