Point-Of-Care tests may be performed in your house, a doctor's office, an emergency room, an infectious disease containment unit, an ambulance, an accident scene, the military, the radiology department, a cruise ship, or even the space shuttle.Point-of-care testing can also be carried out by a wide range of healthcare professionals, such as lab technicians, emergency first responders, radiologists, physicians, nurses, and physician assistants. Sometimes referred to as "home tests" or "self-tests," they can even be completed by the individual.
Blood glucose monitoring and at-home pregnancy tests are the most often used point-of-care assays. Point-of-care testing will continue to be a crucial component of medical testing as medical care develops to become more consumer-focused. However, it's crucial that point-of-care diagnostics are a component of a testing continuum that also includes centralised clinical laboratories and a group of healthcare professionals in order for you to receive the best care possible using these tests.
| Advantage |
Point-of-care testing, when used correctly, can result in more effective, efficient medical treatments and higher-quality medical care.
Point-of-care tests can enable you to take charge of your medical care at home by enabling more frequent and reliable testing. The ideal outcome is higher-quality healthcare. For instance, research has indicated that patients who monitor blood thinners (anticoagulants) like warfarin themselves saw fewer severe side effects from the medication.
Point-of-care testing is also essential in the operating room and during emergencies. Before administering stroke drugs to a patient who is having a stroke, a first responder or other healthcare professional must measure the prothrombin time/international normalised ratio (PT/INR) to check blood coagulation. During open heart surgery and organ transplants, coagulation is also measured using point-of-care diagnostics.
By lowering the time it takes to treat patients and so shortening their stays, point-of-care testing can also help ease the overcrowding in emergency rooms. They are especially helpful in catastrophe scenarios, such as Hurricane Katrina, or in any situation where access to infrastructure for power, water, and laboratories is restricted.
Point-of-care testing, when done at a doctor's office, can cut back on follow-up visits or phone calls. In one study, providing routine testing for haemoglobin A1c, haemoglobin, and lipids at the point of care resulted in a 21% drop in the number of tests required for each patient, an 89% decrease in follow-up calls, and a 61% decrease in patient follow-up visits.
With traditional laboratory testing, there is a risk that patients won't come back for care if they have to wait at home for the findings. Testing for HIV viral load and TB have both demonstrated this. In a research conducted in a clinic in Ghana, point-of-care testing was used to address this issue. When HIV testing were readily available to patients at a TB clinic, they were more inclined to return for HIV treatment as well.
Point-of-care testing can also deliver test findings in areas where clinical laboratories are absent or inaccessible, such as in underdeveloped nations, remote areas, on cruise liners, or even on the space shuttle.
| Future for POCT |
 Point-of-care testing has already significantly changed how care is provided and managed for several illnesses, such as diabetes. Point-of-care testing's market is anticipated to continue growing, which will change the way healthcare is provided by making it more patient-driven and targeted while supplying more data to support evidence-based therapy. Future point-of-care testing could include brand-new tools for managing severely ill patients in the operating room, the hospital, or other settings, like tests for drug overdoses or complete blood counts. Additionally, fresh tests might be created for detecting cancers sooner, including cervical cancer. The management of chronic illnesses will also continue to depend on point-of-care diagnostics. Clinical laboratory testing will never be entirely replaced by point-of-care testing. Point-of-care testing will still continue to be an expanding aspect of your healthcare experience as technology develops to fulfil the desire for more simplified, higher quality treatment. |