Shared decision-making in persons living with dementia: A scoping review

Evidence supports that older adults with cognitive impairment can reliably communicate their values and choices, even as cognition may decline. Shared decision-making, including the patient, family members, and healthcare providers, is critical to patient-centered care. The aim of this scoping review was to synthesize what is known about shared decision-making in persons living with dementia. A scoping review was completed in PubMed, CINAHL, and Web of Science. Keywords included content areas of dementia and shared decision-making. Inclusion criteria were as follows: description of shared or cooperative decision making, cognitively impaired patient population, adult patient, and original research. Review articles were excluded, as well as those for which the formal healthcare provider was the only team member involved in the decision-making (e.g., physician), and/or the patient sample was not cognitively impaired. Systematically extracted data were organized in a table, compared, and synthesized. The search yielded 263 non-duplicate articles that were screened by title and abstract. Ninety-three articles remained, and the full text was reviewed; 32 articles were eligible for this review. Studies were from across Europe ( n = 23), North America ( n = 7), and Australia ( n = 2). The majority of the articles used a qualitative study design, and 10 used a quantitative study design. Categories of similar shared decision-making topics emerged, including health promotion, end-of-life, advanced care planning, and housing decisions. The majority of articles focused on shared decision-making regarding health promotion for the patient ( n = 16). Findings illustrate that shared decision-making requires deliberate effort and is preferred among family members, healthcare providers, and patients with dementia. Future research should include more robust efficacy testing of decision-making tools, incorporation of evidence-based shared decisionmaking approaches based on cognitive status/diagnosis, and consideration of geographical/cultural differences in healthcare delivery systems.