Five More from ACOG

On March 14 the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists published five new Choosing Wisely^® recommendations, adding to their first set of five released in 2013.

Among the new recommendations are cautions against prenatal ultrasounds for non-medical purposes, including keepsake videos or photographs, and routinely recommending activity restriction or bedrest during pregnancy. Another new recommendation encourages clinicians and average-risk women to discuss the need for pelvic ultrasounds to screen for ovarian cancer.

“As obstetrician-gynecologists, we understand the importance of providing safe, high quality care for our patients. But as the nation focuses on better ways to provide this care, the overuse of resources is an issue of considerable concern and many experts agree that the current way health care is delivered in this country contains too much waste and inefficiency,” wrote ACOG President Mark S. DeFrancesco, MD, MBA, in a recent blog post. “It’s crucial that providers across all specialties and patients work together to have conversations about wise treatment decisions. That’s why ACOG is a proud partner of Choosing Wisely, a campaign led by the ABIM Foundation, with a goal of advancing a national dialogue on avoiding unnecessary medical tests, treatments and procedures. The key word here is ‘unnecessary.’”

ACOG has also worked with Consumer Reports to create information for patients about scheduling early deliveries during pregnancy and the associated risks.