Costs of Laboratory Ordering Strategies

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Abstract
The selection of appropriate laboratory ordering strategies is one of the unsolved issues in diagnostic medicine. While the literature of the 1970's described a variety of positive and negative reports on the utilization of automated multiphasic testing, in many instances such reports failed to consider the size, test volume, and philosophy of the institution studied. The present study was conducted at a health maintenance organization whose goals include cost-effectiveness along with the maintenance and promotion of good health. The laboratory costs associated with physicians' use of component vs profile chemistries were evaluated. The laboratory data were collected over a four-month period on patients who had not previously been diagnosed. The medical staff was free to choose a 20-item chemistry profile or single or multiple component chemistries. An average net savings of $2.36 per patient was realized when profile chemistries were used.

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