Report: Engaging patients in Choosing Wisely
Project directors for Choosing Wisely grantee organizations recently shared what they learned after three years of working to raise awareness and educate people in their communities about overuse.
The new report, “Lessons Learned from Patient Engagement,” shares insights about engaging patients, families and caregivers in Choosing Wisely conversations. It captures key themes from the grantee feedback in the following areas:
Interventions and implementations
Many project directors highlighted the importance of working with partners, weaving Choosing Wisely in existing or complementary workflows when possible and relying on community leads to guide interventions. When disseminating messages, many grantees collaborated with marketing professionals, connected with local media and leveraged social media.
Challenges and barriers
Some organizations struggled to maintain momentum for Choosing Wisely amid competing priorities, dealing with staff turnover and some disagreement about recommendations. They identified opportunities to find efficiencies and acknowledged that it may take time and persistence for patients to understand that “less is more” when it comes to health care.
Lessons learned
Project directors reiterated how important partnerships are to spread Choosing Wisely and added that in-person meetings are also essential. They suggested using the “Five Questions to Ask Your Doctor” materials to introduce the concept of Choosing Wisely and detailed concepts to consider with funding, branding and messaging. Finally, they listed some best practices for successful team collaboration.
Where to find patient resources
Grantees also discussed Choosing Wisely patient materials, several of which can be posted or placed in waiting or exam rooms, or given to patients as educational handouts.
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