Assignment 6-3
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School
McMaster University**We aren't endorsed by this school
Course
BIO 1A03
Subject
Medicine
Date
Dec 16, 2024
Pages
2
Uploaded by DeanLobsterMaster917
Assignment #6 - ResearchHTHSCI 1ML3 – Introduction to Laboratory Sciences1)Search the medical literature and identify a Laboratory Medicine research article that you findinteresting.Journal Article:“Evaluating the Connections Between Primary Care Practice and Clinical LaboratoryTesting: A Review of the Literature and Call for Laboratory Involvement in the Solutions“Link:https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23276182/2)Summarize the study in 200 words or less and answer the questions below:a) Summary + What was it about this study that you found most interesting?This study identifies and discusses the key factors that influence the gap betweenprimary care practice and clinical laboratory testing. Through conduction of a focused literaturereview, seven key themes were assessed for laboratory medicine–primary care that impactedthe Institute of Medicine (IOM) Quality Domains at specific stages of the Affected Total TestingPathway (TTP) Phases:process failures, delays, communication gaps, errors in judgment andcognition, influence of minorities/language, practice culture, and lack of patient centeredness.Of these key themes, the most compelling finding is how common a process breakdown isbetween laboratories and clinical practices considering the potential health and prospectivetreatment implications on the patient due to these errors and delays. Many practices havereported practices that lack a process for ordering, implementing, and reporting laboratoryresults. Others encountered difficulty accessing laboratory results and an ill defined follow-upsystemleadingtomislocatedlaboratoryresults.Thesevariousfailureswereexhibitedthroughout all phases of the TTP and all converge to the issue of clinical decisions lacking thenecessary laboratory information for patient care.b) What are the future impacts of this paper on patient care?The future implications of these findings are the redesigning of clear and comprehensiveprocesses that aim to mitigate the risk of error and adverse events and increase communicationbetween the laboratories and clinical practices. These changes may include a computerizedreporting system to improve process tracking of lab results and samples as well as an accuratefollow-up system from the pre-analytic phase to thepost-analytic phase. An integratedcomputerized platform can allow for processes to be streamlined, automated alters, seamlessresults-sharing and real-time test tracking which all improves the patient care efficiency. Withminimal human input in the monotonous, and error-prone tasks, the risk of miscommunicationand delays are reduced. Additionally, enhanced communication protocols between laboratoriesand primary care providers are equally important. Ultimately, this ensures that both the lab and
clinic are aligned on the necessary steps within a well-structured support system to facilitateclear and timely information exchange.c) If you were given the opportunity to build on this research work and design a follow up study withunlimited resources to do it, describe the study you would do.A follow-up study I would design would assess the disparities between primary carepractices & clinical laboratory testing based on healthcare facility size—large hospitals tosmaller, less advanced community clinics. I would have a stratified random sampling of 30healthcare facilities and group them into 3 categories: Large Hospitals with advanced facilitieswith >300 beds and access to state-of-the-art laboratory infrastructure, Medium-Sized Facilitieshospitals with 100–300 beds and moderate technological capabilities, and Community Clinicswith <100 beds and basic lab setups. Various metrics will be analyzed including test availability,utilization efficiency, turn around time, result quality as well as patient outcomes and costs.Data analysis will be done through statistical comparison:One-way ANOVA with a significancelevel of 5% to determine statistical significance of lab testing metrics and outcomes acrossfacility types.Marking RubricCriteriaMarkCommentsStudent understood the articleand summarized it clearly12345Not UnderstoodUnderstoodStudent answered thequestions asked12345Did not answerFully answeredQuestions askedquestions askedReport written clearly12345PoorExcellentAnswers demonstratedunderstanding of the issues12345NoGoodUnderstandingUnderstandingWas able to apply conceptslearned in class to theassignment12345MinimalSignificantLearningLearning