Feasibility Study of a Patient-centered CDS for Recommended Screenings in Primary Care

Primary care professionals (PCPs) are responsible for identifying patients who are eligible for all recommended screenings. Eligibility is difficult, given the number of screenings recommended by the French National Authority for Health (HAS), and the complexity of defining risk groups. When eligibility for one or more screenings is identified, the PCP informs the patient and can help him or her make the decision, considering his or her values and preferences.

Lack of information for patients and lack of time for PCPs are the main obstacles to prevention in primary care (PC). Another barrier identified is the lack of opportunity for patients who do not consult their PCP very often, as they are less likely to be approached for preventive interventions due to other more urgent reasons for consultation.

A Medical Decision Support System (MDSS) is a software application designed to be a direct aid to clinical decision-making, in which an inference engine matches individual patient characteristics with a computerized knowledge base or machine-learning algorithm to propose a risk assessment or adapted recommendations to the healthcare professional and/or patient.

The aim of the ADER-F research program is to support the development and evaluation of a complex intervention centred on the use of a MDSS called "Lianeli".

This complex intervention will ultimately contribute to structuring new consultations dedicated to prevention in general practice, by improving the physician's sense of self-efficacy in conducting the shared screening decision, and reducing the patient's decision-making conflict.