Independence of Coping Styles With the Patient-Doctor Relationship and Shared Decision-Making in People With Parkinson's Disease

Introduction: 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. Objective: 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). Methods: 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. Results: 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). Conclusion: Patient-doctor relationship and shared decision-making are independent of the coping style in people with PD.