Date of Award
Fall 2021
Document Type
Open Access Dissertation
Department
Health Services and Policy Management
First Advisor
Melanie Cozad
Abstract
Patients with fibromyalgia are faced with many decisions throughout the process of seeking and obtaining health care. For patients to feel empowered to take action, it is essential they feel as if they can play a role in making decisions up to their desired level of participation. However, it is unclear what constitutes empowerment in shared decision making between patients and providers. For patients with fibromyalgia, who deal with complex symptomology and individualized treatment choice, it is important to know what makes them feel empowered to participate in care. The objective of this dissertation is to create a patient-centered definition and context for empowerment within shared decision making between patients with fibromyalgia and their doctor. The findings presented here provide perspectives on empowerment and shared decisions directly from the voices of patients with fibromyalgia.
Rights
© 2021, Alicia Marie Oostdyk
Recommended Citation
Oostdyk, A. M.(2021). Hear My Voice: Qualitative Studies to Explore What Empowers Patients to Talk With Their Doctor and Participate in Making Health Care Decisions. (Doctoral dissertation). Retrieved from https://scholarcommons.sc.edu/etd/6600