Top 5 lists of unnecessary services
Compiled by medical specialty societies in each country, so-called top 5 lists of services that physicians and patients should question are a core element of the Choosing Wisely campaign. Recommendations in the top 5 should be based on evidence, that is, there should be demonstrable proof that the service offers patients few advantages and might even do harm. Employing methods suitable to their national context, the specialty societies determine which five services are to be included in the top 5 list of their field. This means, for example, they can take different approaches to involving physicians in identifying and selecting the services to be included in each top 5 list. How each society goes about this is up to them. It is precisely this kind of bottom-up approach that serves to motivate physicians and helps make the campaign so successful in different countries. In just two years’ time, every medical specialty society in Canada has compiled a top 5 list that is met with support and advanced by patient organizations.