Breast Advocate Founder Moderates Shared Decision-Making Panel At ASPS ‘The Meeting’

Breast Advocate’s Founder Dr. Minas Chrysopoulo this month had the honor of moderating a panel on the importance of shared decision-making in breast reconstruction at this year’s American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) annual meeting in Chicago. ‘The Meeting’ is the largest plastic surgery meeting in the World and welcomes surgeons from all over the globe. Dr Chrysopoulo had the privilege of being joined on the panel by Breast Advocate co-contributor Dr Hani Sbitany, and patient advocates Terri Coutee and Kirstin Litz.

“Once upon a time, I’d tell a patient their breast reconstruction options and the associated risks and recommend what I thought was best. Then I discovered shared decision-making and it changed my practice forever,” shared Dr. Minas Chrysopoulo.

What exactly is “shared decision-making”?

Shared decision-making is the conversation and information exchange that happens between a patient and their healthcare professional to reach a treatment plan together. The doctor ensures the patient is fully educated about all their treatment options and the associated risks, while the patient shares their preferences, values and any other personal factors that are important in reaching the best plan for the patient.

Shared decision-making flies in the face of the paternalistic approach to healthcare delivery and instead empowers patients to have an equal voice in their treatment planning – It was the driving philosophy behind the creation of the Breast Advocate App.

Listen to the entire shared decision-making presentation here.