The care of patients usually involves the making of diagnoses, the facilitation of choices, and the elucidation of prognosis, all the while comforting with empathy and support.

Medical decision-making techniques are quantitative methods that facilitate diagnosis, choices, and counseling on prognosis. Even when these techniques are not used quantitatively, they are particularly helpful for the qualitative insights they provide in decision-making.

In this section, the chapter on Refining Probability facilitates the making of diagnoses. The chapters on Decision Analysis, Treatment & Testing Thresholds and Cost-Effectiveness Analysis facilitate the making of choices. (The technique that helps us counsel our patients on prognosis is incorporated in Chapter 8.)