NHS Direct is piloting three 'Online Patient Decision Aids' (OPDAs) aiming to help patients make informed healthcare choices about their treatment; this web-based project constitutes the first initiative of this kind in the United Kingdom.

OPDAs have been designed for patients who are facing difficult decisions about medical tests or treatments; in case there is no clinical evidence about an optimal treatment strategy and patients do not know which will be best for them to choose, they are asked to participate actively in the decision-making process. The OPDAs will allow patients to review all the information, including the pros and cons of the treatment options available; they can view filmed interviews with people who live with the conditions, before completing a short questionnaire to assess their treatment preferences. The questionnaire can then be used to support joint decision making between the patient and their clinician.

This initiative will increase patients' awareness of the expected risks, benefits and likely outcomes, empowering them to make informed choices about their care. In turn, this will also help ensure NHS resources are used appropriately.

Phase one of the pilot has included the development of an OPDA for patients with osteoarthritis of the knee and the transfer onto the Internet of two already developed Decision Aids for patients with an enlarged prostate or localised prostate. All three will be trialled in the NHS across eight pilot sites over eight weeks from the beginning of June 2010. Patients who are eligible to take part in the pilot will be given access to the OPDAs via their specialist clinician. Subject to the successful completion of phase one and pending intellectual property agreement, further stages will include the transfer online or development of up to six more OPDAs.

NHS Direct's web-first approach means in the future Decision Aids can be available in a variety of digital formats such as videos, interactive Questions & Answers and webchats, with additional telephone support available via NHS Direct, if required.

Although the pilot will be developed as a stand-alone web service with telephone support, the long-term aim is to develop a national multi-media NHS 'wrap' for OPDAs using NHS Direct's existing online health and symptom checker infrastructure.

The pilot will be then evaluated by the University of Cardiff and the NHS Direct. They will determine the most cost effective process of developing the OPDAs and review their effectiveness, accessibility and acceptability to patients and clinicians, as well as its impact on services. If the evaluation proves that the online service can deliver benefits to patients and the NHS, it will be then considered for a national launch.

During this pilot phase, NHS Direct has been working in partnership with: the NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement, who provided initial support for the development of all three Patient Decision Aids, the East of England Strategic Health Authority, the Department of Health, the Foundation for Informed Medical Decision Making and a private healthcare company.

Further information:

• Original News Article - E-Health Insider
• News Release - NHS Direct