For the past six years, leaders of Choosing Wisely campaigns from more than 25 countries around the world have gathered to share campaign strategies and learn from each other. This meeting enables a rich exchange of ideas and has fostered international collaborations related to Choosing Wisely. Given the COVID-19 pandemic, the planned in-person meeting was moved online. The first Choosing Wisely International virtual roundtable took place on October 13 & 14, 2020. The meeting goals were to share learnings from the COVID-19 pandemic to date, and to continue to strengthen our community of practice. A shared experience across Choosing Wisely campaigns globally has been a renewed urgency of our collective efforts. The COVID-19 pandemic is testing the resilience of health care workers, systems and resources and its pressures underscore the need to use health care resources wisely.

The Roundtable kicked off with a special presentation open to the global Choosing Wisely community by Dr. Don Berwick on ‘Addressing Overuse in the New Normal’.  Dr. Berwick is President Emeritus and Senior Fellow, Institute for Healthcare Improvement and brought his global leadership and vision on quality and patient safety to share how health care systems and providers are rapidly learning and changing in response to COVID-19.  Berwick highlighted how considerations of sustainability, reducing waste, and improving value are vital to meeting the complex health needs posed not just by the COVID-19 pandemic but our rapidly changing society. Hundreds of participants from around the globe had the opportunity for a Q&A with Dr. Berwick following the presentation.

The remainder of the Roundtable engaged campaign leaders from over 25 countries and six continents in breakout discussions and panel presentations. A panel on campaign innovations featured Choosing Wisely leaders from Rwanda, New Zealand, United States and England! The virtual roundtable format enabled a rich sharing of ideas and work, and the Choosing Wisely international community has committed to meeting more frequently on a virtual basis throughout the COVID-19 pandemic to connect and collaborate on key priorities including antimicrobial stewardship and medical education. Catch up on the conversation from the Roundtable by checking out #ChoosingWisely2020 on Twitter!