Take your partners for the dance

There are two categories of people: those who believe that there are two categories of people and those who don't. More sensibly, there are three ways in which doctors may consult with patients (p 780). In the paternalistic model the doctor decides what to do. In the informed model the patient decides after the doctor explains the options. This theme issue of the BMJ celebrates and explores a middle way: the shared model, where doctor and patient decide together what action to take.

These are models, and reality …