Choosing Wisely International Series in BMJ
Dec 15, 2022 - Research
A series in the BMJ highlights evidence-based approaches to reduce overuse associated with Choosing Wisely recommendations.
Choosing Wisely International Series in BMJ
Dec 15, 2022 - Research
A series in the BMJ highlights evidence-based approaches to reduce overuse associated with Choosing Wisely recommendations.

Choosing Wisely Canada coordinates the Choosing Wisely International collaboration. This is a consortium of more than 30 countries globally with active Choosing Wisely campaigns. As Choosing Wisely campaigns continue to grow and mature around the world, there is a need for understanding how to embed list recommendations into practice.
The BMJ and the Choosing Wisely international collaboration have partnered on a series of articles that describe evidence-based changes to practice to reduce overuse. These articles are published in the education section of the journal and shine a spotlight on shared Choosing Wisely priority overuse topics across countries. Articles are written by teams of international experts from a variety of specialties related to the topics and include patient coauthors.
The education section of BMJ has a wide global readership and publishes articles on common clinical topics of international appeal to a diverse group of clinicians. The articles are intended to help guide practice and decision-making and include key phrases or statistics to use in conversations with patients.
Articles published to date include:
- Reducing Routine Inpatient Blood Testing
- Reducing unnecessary Pre-operative Testing
- Reduce Unnecessary Use of Proton Pump Inhibitors
- Do Not Routinely Test for Vitamin D
- Discussing Prognosis and What Matters Most for People with Serious Illness
- Managing Neuropsychiatric Symptoms in Patients with Dementia
- When and How to Deintensify Type 2 Diabetes Care
- Using Antibiotics Wisely for Respiratory Tract Infection in the Era of Covid-19
- Reducing Unnecessary Red Blood Cell Transfusion in Hospitalised Patients
- Do not routinely Offer Imaging for Uncomplicated Low Back Pain
- Avoid Doing Chest X Rays in Infants with Typical Bronchiolitis
- Advise Non-Pharmacological Therapy as First Line Treatment for Chronic Insomnia