PHYSICIANS office RESOURCE FEBRUARY 2017
Irwin Z . Rothenberg , MBA , MS , CLS ( ASCP ) is a Technical Writer & Quality Advisor for COLA Resources , Inc .
LabOratory Point of Care Testing ( POCT ): What ’ s New ?
By Irwin Z . Rothenberg , MBA , MS , CLS ( ASCP )
POCT is taking a larger role as the healthcare systems continually shifts from curative to preventive medicine by focusing on early detection and management of chronic disease , along with a more patient-centered approach to health care . POCT promotes these goals with rapid test results that providers can use to immediately inform patients of their condition or progress , and modify their treatment on-site . This provides a face-to-face opportunity to ensure understanding and discussion of future goals , thus more directly involving the patient in their own care .
POCT is defined by the College of American Pathologists as “ tests designed to be used at or near the site where the patient is located , that do not require permanent dedicated space , and that are performed outside the physical facilities of clinical laboratories ”. POCT also streamlines the testing process by obviating the need to collect a specimen , transport it to the lab , then perform testing , and transmit the results back to the provider . This speed and efficiency often improves both patient outcomes and patient satisfaction .
Increasing Demand for POCT These advantages are further enhanced by continuous technological innovation , improving the quality , convenience , connectivity , speed , and range of applications . Emerging technological innovations include smartphone apps , biosensors , lab-on-a chip , and wearable devices . The transmission of POC test results in Electronic Health Records ( EHR ) further enhances the advantages of POCT . These results can be shared instantaneously with all members of the medical team , enhancing immediate patient assessment and treatment as well as making POC data available for analysis .
Additional factors in our society that are enhancing the demand for rapid , on site , decentralized , personalized and automated laboratory testing include :
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