Outcomes associated with matching patients' treatment preferences to physicians' recommendations: study methodology

Participants included patients with moderate and severe psoriasis attending outpatient dermatology clinics at the University Medical Centre Mannheim, University of Heidelberg, Germany. A self-administered online survey used conjoint analysis to measure participants' preferences for psoriasis treatment options at the initial study visit. Physicians' treatment recommendations were abstracted from each participant's medical records. The Preference Matching Index (PMI), a measure of concordance between the participant's preferences for treatment and the physician's recommended treatment, was determined for each participant at t1 (initial study visit). A clinical outcome measure, the Psoriasis Area and Severity Index, and two participant-derived outcomes assessing treatment satisfaction and health related quality of life were employed at t1, t2 (twelve weeks post-t1) and t3 (twelve weeks post-t2). Change in outcomes was assessed using repeated measures analysis of variance. The association between participants' PMI scores at t1 and outcomes at t2 and t3 was evaluated using multivariate regressions analysis.We describe methods for capturing concordance between patients' treatment preferences and recommended treatment and for assessing its association with specific treatment outcomes. The methods are intended to promote the incorporation of patients' preferences in treatment decision-making, enhance treatment satisfaction, and improve treatment effectiveness through greater adherence.Patient-centered care has been defined as being "respectful of and responsive to individual patient preferences, needs and values and ensuring that patient values guide all clinical decisions" [1,2]. Patient-centered care fulfills the obligation of healthcare providers to place the interest of patients first and is associated with improved patient satisfaction, quality of life and better treatment adherence [1,3]. Although current debate exists around the definition of patient-centered care, m