The American Society for Clinical Pathology (ASCP) will partner with the California Society of Pathologists (CSP) to present a Choosing Wisely symposium at CSP’s annual meeting on December 7, 2013. The seminar is geared toward eliminating costly, ineffective medical practices and is part of a larger Choosing Wisely campaign led by the ABIM Foundation.

As part of the educational initiative, ASCP and other partner organizations were asked to identify target areas for procedure reduction and cost saving. ASCP came up with 5 recommendations, including avoiding low-risk human papillomavirus (HPV) testing, population-based screening for 25-OH-Vitamin D deficiency, and routine preoperative testing for low-risk surgeries without a clinical indication. ASCP also advised against ordering Methylated Septin (SEPT9) on patients for whom conventional diagnostics are not possible and using bleeding time tests to guide patient care.

In each case, the healthcare practices are frequent, expensive, or ineffectual, and may even cause more harm than good. In addition, the decision to eliminate or substitute these tests often lies with the clinician.

Materials for the California initiative includes a resource website and toolkit equipped with videos, articles, podcasts, posters, and handouts, tip sheets, and an e Learning course. For more information, visit ASCP.