Independence of Coping Styles With the Patient-Doctor Relationship and Shared Decision-Making in People With...

Coping styles have a mediating effect on several clinical outcomes. The patient-doctor relationship and the patient's role in decision-making process might be influenced by the way the patient reacts to certain stressors or problems due to the evolution of their disease.

To assess the role of coping strategies on the patient-doctor relationship and the patient's role in decision-making in a group of people with Parkinson's disease (PD).

A cross-sectional study was carried out. The Coping Style Questionnaire (CSQ-40), the 9-item Patient-Doctor Relationship Questionnaire (PDRQ-9), and the 9-item Shared Decision-Making Questionnaire (SDM-Q-9) were applied.

A total of 36 women and 64 men with PD were included. The predominant coping style in women was rational. In men, the detachment style was more frequent. The SDM-Q-9 mean score was 33.2 ± 11.2 (transformed median score of 80). The PDRQ-9 average score was 2.9 ± 1 (sum score of 26.1 ± 8.7). No association was found between the CSQ-40 with the PDRQ-9 or SDM-Q-9. On the other hand, the PDRQ-9 mean score and the transformed SDM-Q-9 score highly correlated (r = 0.62, P < .001).

Patient-doctor relationship and shared decision-making are independent of the coping style in people with PD.