Sammanfattning
As part of the project Perioperative Risk,-an epidemiological study of complications associated with surgical and orthopaedic operations-the article reports a study of patients' perception of their involvement in decisionmaking in medical consultations, and how the outcomes of surgery and subsequent care determine patients' evaluation of the treatment. Patients' view of their involvement in the decision-making process was obtained before as well as after surgery. The results reveal that the more satisfied the patients were with the outcome of the operation, and the post-operative situation, the more they were inclined to assume responsibility for the decision to have surgery. The opposite response pattern, indicating a negative evaluation of either the operation or the post-operative care, resulted in an outcome where patients described others-especially the physician-as being responsible for the decision to have surgery. The results suggest that patients' evaluations of surgery are based upon a more global reaction to what happened during the entire care process. Dissatisfaction with either the operation or the post-operative care leads to a negative outcome in terms of patients' perceptions of their own involvement. This emphasizes the importance of all health care professionals seeing themselves as a team with complementary responsibilities for success in health care. Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons.