Eliciting Health Care Preferences With Discrete Choice Experiments
Menée en Chine par enquête auprès de 188 patients atteints d'un cancer en phase terminale (âge moyen : 61 ans), cette étude analyse leurs préférences concernant les soins de fin de vie
End-of-life care often includes a constellation of supportive care options marred by conflicting concerns among patients, their families, and health care professionals. Leng et al1 performed a discrete choice experiment to estimate end-of-life care preferences among terminally ill patients with cancer in China. Although they cited prior studies that have evaluated the end-of-life care preferences of patients in other countries, the authors remarked that China remains an outlier in that it lacks shared decision-making between patients and their health care team. End-of-life decisions in China may also be strongly influenced by family members, and this complex dynamic may suppress the patient’s priorities. This unique context elevates the importance of the research by Leng et al.1 The findings provided empirical evidence that improving quality of life was of greater value among study participants than was extending life. Furthermore, dying at home was preferred over dying in a hospital.
JAMA Network Open , éditorial en libre accès, 2021