National Survey of Medical Decisions, 2006-2007

The National Survey of Medical Decisions (the DECISIONS study) was a random-digit dial telephone survey of 3,010 adults over the age of 40 in the United States conducted between November 2006 and May 2007. Participants were asked a series of screening questions to identify which of ten common medical decisions they may have discussed with their health care providers in the previous two years and then completed two to three question modules regarding specific decisions that were relevant to each individual. Funded by a grant from the Foundation for Informed Medical Decision Making (Boston, MA), the DECISIONS study is a unique data source which enables consideration of a wide variety of research questions related to when and how older adults manage the medical decisions they face. The initial screening module gathered highly generalizeable data regarding the prevalence of different types of common medical decisions in the experience of older Americans. The dynamically-administered modules then requested detailed information regarding how and when patients discuss key medical decisions with their health care providers, and whether variations in decision-making processes may have influenced patients' medical care.