Kurri Kurri Hospital has introduced a new point-of-care testing program that will give emergency department patients faster access to pathology results and improve overall care.
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NSW Health Pathology is leading the statewide effort to introduce the managed point-of-care testing scheme in public EDs that don’t have 24-hour pathology laboratories on site.
The aim is to provide ED teams, particularly in regional and rural areas, with access to on-the-spot results for certain types of pathology tests so they can deliver more timely care for patients.
The Hunter New England Local Health District is the latest to adopt the program and worked with Pathology North to introduce 31 devices across 28 emergency departments.
Kurri Kurri Hospital has introduced one new device and upgraded an existing device to support patient care.
The hand-held devices provide on-site analysis for blood gases, lactate, haemoglobin, troponin, chemistries and electrolytes, and blood coagulation tests – some of the most common pathology tests ED teams rely on.
“By having reliable point-of-care devices within the ED, we can get faster results for certain tests and make quicker clinical decisions,” general manager Trish Wilson said.
