Choosing clinical laboratory services to work with can be a daunting task for many people. There are so many factors that need to be considered before making the final decision, and it's essential to take your time in order to choose wisely. This article will discuss five tips for selecting the best laboratory for you so you don't have to spend hours researching this on your own.
How Do You Choose Laboratory Services?
The clinical laboratory remains an integral part of the clinical workflow in healthcare. Laboratory services perform tests that are used for diagnosis, treatment, and monitoring of patients. For this reason, clinical laboratories are essential contributors to patient care.
When choosing clinical laboratory services, it is crucial to consider these five factors:
1. Location of Clinical Lab
When choosing clinical laboratory services, one major factor to consider is the location. The location may affect how fast you receive results on your tests or whether or not they can accommodate emergency clinical lab requests.
2. Clinical Lab Turnaround Time
Laboratory turnaround time, or TAT, is the amount of time it takes from when clinical laboratory professionals send specimens to clinical labs until they receive results back. A clinical laboratory with a short lab turnaround time may provide faster clinical results than one with a longer turnaround time.
3. Number of Clinical Lab Locations
How many clinical laboratory testing sites does the clinical lab you are considering offer? Some laboratory services have many locations, while others have only one location. If your clinical lab only offers one or two types of tests, usually via a limited number of hospital-based testing sites, it may not be ideal. The clinical laboratory services you choose should ideally encompass all your clinical needs and provide access to clinical services at multiple locations to make clinical testing easy for you.
4. How Easy Clinical Lab Is to Do Business With?
Does the clinical laboratory selected prioritize your needs and put you first? How well does the clinical lab communicate? Is it accessible by phone, e-mail, or fax 24/7? Does the lab charge extra fees that are not included in their published price list?
5. Quality
Quality refers to how well the lab operations are managed in terms of ensuring accurate lab testing is performed while following clinical lab policies and procedures, clinical lab performance improvement, and clinical lab regulatory compliance. Clinical labs with a documented quality management system are more desirable than those that do not have one.
Laboratory services play an essential role in clinical diagnosis. Choosing the right clinical lab is critical to ensure fast, accurate, and reliable results.
