Sample Comments about Benefits of and Concerns about Point-of-Care Testing
| Response Group | Sample Comments |
|---|---|
| Benefits of POCTs | “Quick answers allow immediate feedback to patients.” |
| “POCTs are vital to appropriate diagnosis and appropriate management of many commonly treated conditions.” | |
| “I have had in house lab for years, and it has saved a few lives or reduced significant morbidity. POCT are [sic] the Future.” | |
| “Judicious use of POCTs in the future means overall healthcare savings.” | |
| “I believe changing medication doses at the time of visit is much more impactful instead of calling the patient later. Quick diagnosis of UTI, strep throat etc. also allows for appropriate quick treatment.” | |
| Concerns about POCT usage | “Being able to monitor quality/run controls” |
| “Concern of accuracy of some of these tests—false negatives and positives.” | |
| “Payment in a CLIA waived office is really an issue.” | |
| “Reimbursement [from] insurance inhibits risk to acquire equipment and maintenance needs.” | |
| “Only concerns would reimbursement from insurance, the initial investment cost, and regulation from the government.” | |
| Both benefits and concerns | “They can be quite useful for patient feedback, but if they are not reliable, they are less helpful.” |
| “Concerns over sensitivity and specificity of test results, helpful to be able to diagnose infections earlier, helpful to monitor critical values such as the INR more quickly.” | |
| “Benefit—fast result, concerns—false negative.” |
CLIA, Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments; INR, international normalized ratio; POCT, point-of-care testing; UTI, urinary tract infection.