Researchers assessing the needs of prosthetists and new prosthesis users for the first prosthesis design identified four themes to promote collaborative discussion: acknowledging complexity in communication, clarifying values, recognizing the role of experience to inform preferences, and understanding the prosthetic journey.
The authors of the related study noted insufficient evidence for guiding decision-making about the first prosthesis, but that shared decision-making (SDM) can incorporate patient-specific values and preferences where evidence is lacking for prosthesis design decisions.
The research team conducted six focus groups with 38 prosthetists and individual semistructured interviews with 17 new prosthesis users.
Resources that support SDM for the first prosthesis design should consider methods for identifying individual communication needs, support with clarifying values, and resources such as experience for achieving informed preferences, within the context of the overall course of rehabilitation and recovery following lower-limb amputation, the study concluded.
The study, “Improving shared decision-making for prosthetic care: a qualitative needs assessment of prosthetists and new lower-limb prosthesis users,” was published in Prosthetics and Orthotics International.
