A Randomized Controlled Trial to Assess the Impact of Upfront Point-of-Care Testing on Emergency Department Treatment Time.
rct · Level II
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- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 29931184.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1093/ajcp/aqy042.
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Abstract
To compare standard emergency department (ED) workflow to a protocolized pathway using upfront point-of-care (POC) tests performed prior to doctor evaluation to determine if this could produce a significant reduction in treatment time. We performed a prospective, randomized, controlled trial. Patients were randomized to receive the standard of care or one of the enhanced workflow pathways with POC tests. There were 1,044 patients enrolled. All workflows, except electrocardiogram and low-dose x-ray (LODOX), exceeded the outcome measure (20% reduction in treatment time). It was significantly shorter compared with the control workflow if the patient received any (i-STAT + CBC)-containing workflows (P = .0001, P = .020, P = .0009, P = .011), as well as the i-STAT + LODOX workflows (P = .0001, P = .034). The full benefit of POC testing can be realized if it is implemented prior to doctor evaluation, as part of a standardized procedure in the ED. This allows for a more rapid availability of investigation results subsequently leading to decreased treatment times.