A new online toolkit puts resources in the hands of pathologists and laboratory professionals to promote conversations between physicians and patients surrounding appropriate tests.

The toolkit, part of ASCP’s Choosing Wiselyinitiative, seeks to raise public awareness about appropriate test utilization and to assist patients in taking an active role in choosing care that is truly necessary.

Pathologists and laboratory professionals are encouraged to explore and share with colleagues the resources in the online toolkit that includes articles, PDF guides, posters, podcasts, and handouts.

ASCP is participating in the Choosing Wiselycampaign, a nationwide initiative of the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) Foundation, to help reduce duplicative tests that are unnecessary and may actually cause harm. Choosing Wisely brings together medical specialty organizations across the country which have each recommended five tests where there is overuse and waste and to disseminate that information to their own members.

As part of this grassroots campaign, ASCP presented a symposium, “Choosing Wisely: How California Pathologists Can Influence Appropriate Testing,” in collaboration with the California Society of Pathologists (CSP), on Dec. 7 in San Francisco.  

George D. Lundberg, MD, MASCP, former editor of The Journal of American Medical Association (JAMA) and Medscape, was among several prominent speakers at the symposium, which was designed to help California pathologists effectively implement ASCP’s Choosing Wisely best practices; impact positive clinical outcomes and cost reduction; and overcome communication, organizational, and systems barriers to do so.

“ASCP is pleased to help begin this dialogue and to help spread the word,” says Lee H. Hilborne, MD, MPH, FASCP, DLM(ASCP)^CM, a former ASCP President and 2011–2012 Chair of the ASCP Institute Advisory Committee. “The Choosing Wisely campaign puts pathologists and laboratory medicine at the forefront of the multidisciplinary medical team that is working together to improve the quality of healthcare delivery.”

The Society was selected to receive funding by the ABIM Foundation to help physicians engage patients in conversations aimed at reducing inappropriate tests and procedures that will improve their care and decrease costs. Support for the $50,000 grant comes from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and extends the efforts of the ABIM Foundation’s Choosing Wisely website campaign in local communities across the United States for the next two years.

To access the Choosing Wisely toolkit, click here. To learn more about the Choosing Wisely campaign, click here.