Blog Category: Letters from the Foundation

An article in Forbes magazine entitled “Mark Cuban Doesn’t Understand Health Care” highlighted a series of tweets sent out by Mr. Cuban telling his 2.8 million followers to obtain quarterly blood tests in order to “have a baseline of your own personal health.” The Forbes piece focused on the “problems with Cuban’s argument” and included… Read more »

I recently attended a presentation by Mark Bonchek of thinkORBIT where I was inspired to reflect on the past three years of Choosing Wisely® and how the campaign reflects a cultural shift both in society at-large and in the way businesses operate. This shift has roots in self-determination theory, complexity theory, co-creation and digital strategies… Read more »

A recent article challenged the Choosing Wisely recommendations around routine stress testing before low-risk surgeries. The article, “Stress Testing Before Low-Risk Surgery: So Many Recommendations, So Little Overuse” suggested the campaign’s partners focus on services with “high baseline rates of inappropriate care.” In her Editor’s Note in the same issue, Rita Redberg, MD, called for… Read more »

A section of the tabloid, US Magazine, called “Stars – They’re Just Like Us”, shows pictures of celebrities doing mundane activities like walking the dog or taking out the garbage. This helps to remind us that, just like the average Joe, they walk their dogs and take out the garbage and— because they are people,… Read more »

Jeffrey Kullgren, MD, MS, MPH, a general internist and researcher from VA’s Center for Clinical Management Research and the University of Michigan Medical School has a method for implementing Choosing Wisely® recommendations. He relies on a behavioral economics technique referred to as “precommitment” which, in this instance, calls upon physicians to make choices rooted in… Read more »