Choosing Wisely Canada recommendations for point of care testing utilization in the acute care setting: Expert-based...

Point of care testing (POCT) offers a broader selection of clinical testing outside of a central laboratory due to its many benefits, such as accessibility and rapid turn-around-time. However, it does have disadvantages and challenges, so proper utilization of POCT is vital to its success. A common area for POCT use is in the acute care setting, and improving the use and quality of POCT in this setting remains clinically important. The Canadian Society of Clinical Chemists (CSCC) POCT Special Interest Group (SIG) and Utilization Management SIG aimed to develop Choosing Wisely Canada recommendations for POCT in the acute care setting.

A working group consisting of 17 experts from the CSCC POCT and Utilization Management SIGs formed to develop recommendations to be evaluated through a two-round modified Delphi consensus survey. Survey consensus was reached if > 80% of the experts rated recommendations with a score of 4 or 5.

A final draft of 12 recommendations were developed, with accompanying rationale and references. Choosing Wisely Canada completed their review, including review by their stakeholder national societies, which led to a finalized seven recommendations.

A collaborative adoption of the evidence-based, seven Choosing Wisely Canada POCT recommendations in acute care settings will help support improved patient care through strong diagnostic integrity, augmented safeguards to patients, and optimization of related healthcare resources. A strong quality management system framework embedded within the implementation of these recommendations will augment the value of POCT within a sustained patient-centered acute care healthcare setting.