The Future of Diagnostic Laboratory Testing in Healthcare

Abstract

The role of diagnostic laboratory testing in healthcare is evolving. The challenge facing the new era of medicine is the appropriate implementation of new tools and technologies to improve patient care in a cost-effective and sustainable manner. Unprecedented expectations to detect disease earlier and effectively treat all aspects of health and wellbeing create demands for testing which may be premature. Test ordering patterns among physicians are subject to psychological factors such as a desire for certainty and risk aversion, as well as fears of patient dissatisfaction, and litigation. The path towards optimizing the utilization of diagnostic laboratory tests must include strategies to minimize non-contributory testing. Appropriate application and sound clinical reasoning are essential to mitigating overdiagnosis, exponential costs on the healthcare system and unnecessary suffering on the part of the patient. Reducing non-contributory laboratory testing practices would allow for the reallocation of resources toward the protection of imperative practices and the advancement of strategies in preventative and individualized medicine. With thoughtful deliberation and constructive conversations among all stakeholders these challenges, pressures and disruptions have the potential to create innovative strategies to optimize the use of diagnostic laboratory testing in healthcare.