Shared Decision Making Among Racially and/or Ethnically Diverse Populations in Primary Care: A Scoping Review of Barriers and Facilitators.

purposeDisparities in the use of shared decision making (SDM) affect minoritized patients. We sought to identify the barriers and facilitators to SDM among diverse patients.

methodsWe conducted a scoping review in adherence to the Joanna Briggs Institute's methodologic framework. Our search of 4 databases-PubMed, Scopus, CINAHL Plus with Full Text, and PsycINFO-used controlled vocabulary and key word terms related to SDM in the care of racially and/or ethnically diverse adults in the primary care setting. We included peer-reviewed studies conducted in the United States or Canada that evaluated the process of decision making and that had populations in which more than 50% of patients were from racial and/or ethnic minorities. Unique records were uploaded to a screening platform for independent review by 2 team members. We used grounded theory to guide our inductive approach and completed a thematic analysis.

resultsA total of 39 studies met all inclusion criteria. We identified 5 overarching themes: (1) factors regarding the decision-making process during the clinical encounter, (2) clinician practice characteristics, (3) trust in the clinician/health care system, (4) cultural congruence between clinician and patient, and (5) extrinsic factors affecting the decision-making process. Barriers of SDM included cultural and language discordance; prejudice, bias, and stereotypes; mistrust; and clinician time constraints. Facilitators of SDM included cultural concordance between clinician and patient; clinician language competence; and clear, honest, and humanistic communication with patients having the ability to ask questions.

conclusionsWe identified a set of potentially modifiable factors that facilitate or impede SDM. Our findings can help inform strategies and interventions to improve SDM among racially and/or ethnically diverse patient populations.