Choosing Wisely, a campaign that began in 2012 in partnership with the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM), has helped doctors cause less or zero harm to their patients by listing down the unnecessary or harmful interventions in the medical field. The U.S. campaign has since inspired other parts of the world to do the same.
Recently, the United Kingdom has released a similar set of guidelines, initiated by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). NICE's list focuses on the "do not's" for doctors, despite the reality that "old habits die hard". It is difficult to break from the mold and from routine, and according to extensive research, there are medical no-no's that doctors still practice.
Scanning For Lower Back Pain
Research has found that 99 percent of people who report lower back pain simply have a mechanical problem that sorts itself out within a month. Despite this, those who are advised for an X-ray, CT, or MRI scan are more likely to go through an operation that those who do not undergo these tests. Doctors are not advised to let a patient do a scan or x-ray for lower back pain in the first six weeks.
Prescribing Cough Medicine to Children
Kids' coughs and colds are mostly caused by viruses, and symptoms often last for a few days until it gets better. The American Association of Pediatrics (AAP) says that antibiotics, which do not work against viruses, and medicines for tickly or dry cough, runny or blocked noses, and sore throats, should not be prescribed to kids.
Doing Random Allergy Tests
Concluding that symptoms like abdominal pain, bloating, or weight loss are caused by "allergies" is misleading. Analysis has found that 8 percent of the population have been tested to be positively allergic to peanuts, but only 1 percent are truly allergic and display symptoms.
