Choosing Wisely is a global Initiative whose aim is to promote conversations between clinicians and patients by helping patients choose care that is:
Supported by evidence
Not duplicative of other tests or procedures already received
Free from harm
Truly necessary
National organisations representing medical specialists asked their members to identify tests or procedures commonly used in their field whose necessity should be questioned and discussed. This call to action has resulted in specialty-specific lists of “Things Providers and Patients Should Question.” To help patients engage their health care provider in these conversations and empower them to ask questions about what tests and procedures are right for them, patient-friendly materials were created based on the specialty societies’ lists of recommendations of tests and treatments that may be unnecessary.
BSACI actively decided to engage with Choosing Wisely by developing evidence based statements which promote best practice in Allergy. As a result the following four statements were developed on:
• Nasal douching in rhinitis
• IgE as a screening tool for food allergy in eczema
• MMR in children with egg allergy
• Alternative testing in food allergy
BSACI would like to thank Dr Erika Harnik and Dr Deepa Choudhury and all those involved in the development of these statements.
Additional Reading: Paper published in JACI in Practice on ‘The Role of Shared Decision Making in Pediatric Food Allergy Management’