Collaborative care: Using six thinking hats for decision making.

Area of Science:

• Healthcare communication strategies
• Collaborative care models
• Decision-making frameworks

Background:

• Effective communication is vital in patient, family, and healthcare professional meetings within collaborative partnerships.
• Meeting success hinges on participant engagement and process quality.
• The six thinking hats technique is proposed to enhance dialogue and engagement.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore the application of the six thinking hats technique for decision-making in collaborative care settings.
• To enhance communication and engagement in patient-family-professional meetings.

Main Methods:

• This study is based on a discussion paper.
• Literature search conducted on CINAHL, PubMed, and Science Direct databases from 1990 to 2017.

Main Results:

• The six thinking hats technique can guide dialogue in patient-family meetings, focusing decision-making.
• It fosters equal care partnerships inclusive of all participants.
• Nurses require training to effectively implement this technique and support participants.

Conclusions:

• The six thinking hats technique can improve collaborative decision-making, enabling informed choices for patients, families, and professionals.
• Nurses, as patient advocates, are well-positioned to lead the implementation of this technique in healthcare meetings.