Medical and economic outcomes of point-of-care testing

Pointofcare testing is concerned with the immediacy of response, primarily because of the need to act in a lifethreatening crisis or to provide counsel in the ongoing management of a chronic disease. There are both clinical, operational and economic benefits that can accrue from this testing modality which may be observed from several perspectives the patient, the clinician, the healthcare provider, the healthcare purchaser and society. Thus pointofcare testing can improve the management of chronic diseases such as diabetes, compromised coagulation status and epilepsy both in terms of optimisation of, and compliance with, therapy. There are also lifethreatening crises that can be averted by rapid provision of test results. Each of these scenarios can lead to more efficient use of healthcare resources.