Study, May/18: "Limit, lean or listen? A typology of low-value care..."

The full title of this Dutch study is "Limit, lean or listen? A typology of low-value care that gives direction in de-implementation".

 

Excerpt:

 

"Results:  The type ineffective care is proven ineffective, such as antibiotics for a viral infection. Inefficient care is in essence effective, but is of low-value through inefficient provision or inappropriate intensity, such as chronic benzodiazepine use. Unwanted care is in essence appropriate for the clinical condition it targets, but is low-value since it does not fit the patients' preferences, such as a treatment aimed to cure a patient that prefers palliative care. In this paper, we argue that these three types differ in their most promising strategy for de-implementation and that our typology gives direction in choosing whether to limit, lean or listen."

 

Abstract:

 

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29741672

 

Full Study:

 

https://academic.oup.com/intqhc/advance-article/doi/10.1093/intqhc/mzy100/4993353 

Thank you for posting this, Lapis! I think this is especially true in the U.S., where doctors are so afraid of malpractice suits that they offer all kinds of treatment, some far too excessive. I don't know what can be done about this, but the first way of combating something is recognizing that it exists, which is what this paper is doing.

There is a program called "Choosing Wisely", and I believe it exists in other countries as well. It's aimed at reducing unnecessary tests and procedures. I'm not sure what the outcomes are like, but the idea is fantastic.

 

I found a few links:

 

https://choosingwiselycanada.org/ 

 

http://www.choosingwisely.org/resources/updates-from-the-field/choosing-wisely-around-the-world/ 

Oh, thank you for these links, Lapis! I'm glad to see that the U.S. is also following this. It seems that it's going around the world, so that's good!