Choosing Wisely

We learned at a young age when you drive up to a sign with an upside down triangle bordered in red that you pause (yield) and make certain there is no cross-traffic (or danger) before you proceed.

Across the nation there is an effort to encourage health care providers and consumers to yield (pause) before agreeing to tests and treatment.

The Choosing Wisley initiative, led by the American Board of Internal Medicine Foundation (ABIM), is geared toward improving health care quality and reducing the cost of care by decreasing unnecessary tests and treatment.

The Greater Detroit Area Health Council [GDAHC] is spearheading one of seven initiatives in America that have been awarded funding for the next three years. Our lead partners are DMC PHO, Henry Ford Physician Network and the Michigan State Medical Society, along with supporting partners Blue Care Network, Health Alliance Plan (HAP), Michigan Health and Hospital Association, and the UAW Retiree Medical Benefits Trust.

GDAHC and our Choosing Wisely partners focus on decreasing the use of antibiotics for viral infections among adults, diagnostic testing for low back pain, and screening for Vitamin D deficiencies. To learn more and fore ways to get involved with Choosing Wisely, please visit our microsite.

Through the ABIM Foundation and Consumer Reports, the Five Questions to Ask Your Doctor materials have been created. We encourage you to pass this along to your colleagues, family and friends. In the near future, you will see locally-branded, with GDAHC and our partners, materials for your use.

In addition, you may access the resources on our microsite, created by Consumer Reports, and keep posted to this webpage and our Facebook and Twitter for updates about specific projects with our Choosing Wisely partners.

E-Newsletters and Other Resources

Why Choose the 5 Questions?
What a Michigan Summer Means for Vitamin D
Back to School, Back to Colds and Flus
Daylight Savings Time & Insomnia
Snow, Shoveling and Your Back

HealthDoers Network: Addressing Inappropriate Use Through Choosing Wisely

Leading Examples of Antibiotic Stewardship in the U.S.: Suggestions for the Netherlands
This report features examples of what GDAHC has been able to accomplish with Choosing Wisely. It was presented to the Dutch Minister in Washinton D.C. in December 2016.