Effectiveness of a decision aid for patients with depression: A randomized controlled trial

Background Shared decision making is an important component of patient‐centred care and decision aids are tools designed to support patients' decision making and help patients with depression to make informed choices. Objective The study aim was to assess the effectiveness of a web‐based decision aid for patients with unipolar depression. Design Randomized controlled trial. Setting and participants Adults diagnosed with a major depressive disorder and recruited in primary care centres were included and randomized to the decision aid (n=68) or usual care (n=79). Intervention Patients in the decision aid group reviewed the decision aid accompanied by a researcher. Outcome measures Knowledge about treatment options, decisional conflict, treatment intention and preference for participation in decision making. We also developed a pilot measure of concordance between patients' goals and concerns about treatment options and their treatment intention. Results Intervention significantly improved knowledge (P