Home⇛LPU-St. Cabrini Journal of Allied Medicine⇛vol. 5 no. 3 (2023)

Comparison of Using Point-of-Care Testing (POCT) Between Medical Technologists and Home Users During the Pandemic

Dea Marie Gabrielle Corpuz | Bella Lanie Leron | Joyce Manaig | Johnette Natividad | Kristian Andrei Quiobe

Discipline: Medical Technology

 

Abstract:

Point-of-care testing (POCT) has emerged as a vital diagnostic approach that enables rapid, onsite testing, reducing turnaround time and improving patient management. This study aimed to compare the perceptions of medical technologists and home users regarding the accessibility, benefits, and concerns of POCT during the COVID-19 pandemic. A descriptive research design was employed, involving 80 respondents from Laguna, Philippines, comprising 40 licensed medical technologists and 40 home users. Data were collected using a validated online survey adapted from prior studies and analyzed through frequency distribution, weighted means, T-tests, and ANOVA. Findings revealed that blood glucose testing was the most used POCT among medical technologists, while blood pressure monitoring was predominant among home users. Respondents generally agreed on the benefits of POCT, particularly in improving patient management and enabling continuous monitoring, while concerns such as potential over-testing and quality control were largely disagreed with, indicating confidence in test reliability. Statistical analyses showed no significant differences in perceptions based on sex, age, years of experience, or classification of respondents. The study concludes that POCT is widely accepted and perceived as beneficial by both healthcare professionals and home users. Recommendations include enhancing training programs, simplifying survey tools for non-professional users, and expanding research to further evaluate POCT applications and effectiveness.



References:

  1. Belogianni, I., Anagnostou, G., Papadogeorgaki, E., & Belogiannis, K. (2019). Point of care testing: Internal and External Quality Control System. Clinica Chimica Acta. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0009898119314639.
  2. Christodouleas, D. C., Kaur, B., & Chorti, P. (2018, November 20). From Point-of-Care Testing to eHealth Diagnostic Devices (eDiagnostics). American Chemical Society, 4(12), 1600-1616. https://doi.org/10.1021/acscentsci.8b00625 
  3. Dashlab.ai (2021). Why Modern Labs are Embracing Point-of-Care Testing. https://www.dashlabs.ai/blog/2021-10-15-why-modern-labs-are-embracing-point-of-care-testing 
  4. Dima, K. (2021, February). Point of car testing (POCT) Present and Future. EuroLabNews. Retrieved from https://www.eflm.eu/upload/newsletters/Hot-Topic-in-LM-POCT.pdf. 
  5. Dunlap, D., Ding, E., Abramo, K., Wang, Z., Lilly, C. M., Hafer, N., Buchholz, B., & McManus, D. D. (2021). Point-of-care testing, your cardiologist, and affairs of the heart. Cardiovascular Digital Health Journal, 2(6), 331–335. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cvdhj.2021.10.004
  6. Florkowski, C., Don-Wauchope, A., Gimenez, N., Rodriguez-Capote, K., Wils, J., & Zemlin, A. (2017). Point-of-care testing (POCT) and evidence-based laboratory medicine (EBLM) – does it leverage any advantage in clinical decision making? Critical Reviews in Clinical Laboratory Sciences, 54(7–8), 471–494. https://doi.org/10.1080/10408363.2017.1399336
  7. Fung, A. W. S. (2020, November 2). Utilizing connectivity and data management system for effective Quality Management and regulatory compliance in point of care testing. Practical Laboratory Medicine. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352551720301505
  8. Goble, J. A., & Rocafort, P. T. (2015). Point-of-Care testing. Journal of Pharmacy Practice, 30(2), 229–237. https://doi.org/10.1177/0897190015587696
  9. Jalavu, T. P., Rensburg, M., & Erasmus, R. (2020). Clinical staff knowledge and awareness of point-of-care-testing best practices at Tygerberg Hospital, South Africa. African Journal of Laboratory Medicine, 9(1), 853. https://doi.org/10.4102/ajlm.v9i1.853
  10. Jimenez-Barragan, M., Rodriguez-Oliva, M., Sanchez-Mora, C., Navarro-Bustos, C., Fuentes-Cantero, S., Martin-Perez, S., Garrido-Castilla, J. M., Undabeytia-Lopez, L., Luque-Cid, A., De Miguel-Melendez, J., & Leon-Justel, A. (2021). Emergency severity level-3 patient flow based on point-of-care testing improves patient outcomes. Clinica Chimica Acta, 523, 144–151. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cca.2021.09.011
  11. LABline. (2020, November 12). Advantages and disadvantages of COVID-19 tests studied. Medical Laboratory       Observer.        Retrieved         June    1,            2022,   from https://www.mlo-online.com/diagnostics/assays/article/21162355/advantages-and-disadvantages-of-covid19-tests- studied.
  12. Manocha, A., & Bhargava, S. (2019, November 11). Emerging challenges in point-of-care testing. Current Medicine Research and Practice. Retrieved November 11, 2021, from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S2352081719301941 
  13. Mayo Clinic. (2020, September 18). Get the most out of home blood pressure monitoring. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/high-blood-pressure/in-depth/high-blood-pressure/art-20047889
  14. Melanson, S. E., & Ransohoff, J. R. (2019). What’s new in point-of-care testing?: Point of care. LWW. https://journals.lww.com/poctjournal/Abstract/2019/09000/What_s_New_in_Point_of_Care_Test ing_.3.aspx 
  15. Mitra, P. & Sharma, P. (2021, June 29). POCT in Developing Countries. The Journal of International Federation of Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine, 32(2), 195-199. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8343049/
  16. Mo, X., Wang, X., Zhu, Z., Yu, Y., Chang, D., Zhang, X., Li, D., Sun, F., Zhou, L., Xu, J., Zhang, H., Gao, C., Guan, M., Xiao, Y., & Wu, W. (2021, October 13). Quality Management for point-of-care testing of pathogen Nucleic Acids: Chinese expert consensus. Frontiers. Retrieved June 2, 2022, from https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fcimb.2021.755508/full
  17. Nichols, J. (2021, June). Utilizing Point-of-Care Testing to Optimize Patient Care. The Journal of the International Federation of Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine, 32(2), 140-144. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8343046/ 
  18. Nichols, J. H. (2020, June 19). Chapter 19 – Point-of-care testing. Contemporary Practice in Clinical Chemistry, 4, 323-336. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-815499-1.00019-3 
  19. Nichols, J. H., Alter, D., Chen, Y., Isbell, T. S., Jacobs, E., Moore, N., & Shajani-Yi, Z. (2020). AACC Guidance Document on Management of Point-of-Care Testing. The Journal of Applied Laboratory Medicine, 5(4), 762–787. https://doi.org/10.1093/jalm/jfaa059
  20. Ostchega, Y., Fryar, C. D., Nwankwo, T., & Nguyen, D. T. (2020, April 24). Products - data briefs - number 364 - April 2020. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved June 28, 2022, from https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/databriefs/db364.htm
  21. Perez-Guzman, M. C., Shang, T., Zhang, J. Y., Jornsay, D., & Klonoff, D. C. (2021). Continuous glucose monitoring in the hospital. Endocrinology and Metabolism, 36(2), 240–255. https://doi.org/10.3803/enm.2021.201
  22. Philippine Social Science Council. (2022, August 17). Human Resource for Health in the Time of the COVID-19 Pandemic: Does the Philippines have enough? - Philippine Social Science Council. https://pssc.org.ph/policy_briefs/human-resource-for-health-in-the-time-of-the-covid-19-pandemic-does-the-philippines-have-enough/
  23. Randell, E., & Thakur, V. (2021, June 29). Leading POCT Networks: Operating POCT Programs Across Multiple Sites Involving Vast Geographical Areas and Rural Communities. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8343053/
  24. Scottish Government. (2020, December 15). Coronavirus (COVID-19) point of care and rapid testing - clinical management: Governance policy. Scottish Government. Retrieved June 2, 2022, from https://webarchive.nrscotland.gov.uk/20220508133300/https://www.gov.scot/publications/governance-policy-role-point-care-rapid-testing-covid-19-clinical-management/pages/7/ 
  25. Wiler, J. L., Pines, J. M., & Ward, M. J. (2017). Value and quality innovations in acute and emergency care. In Cambridge University Press eBooks. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316779965
  26. World Health Organization: WHO. (2019, March 20). 10 key issues in ensuring gender equity in the global health workforce. https://www.who.int/news-room/feature-stories/detail/10-key-issues-in-ensuring-gender-equity-in-the-global-health-workforce

Tools


Copyright © 2026  KITE Digital Educational Solutions |  Exclusively distributed by CE-Logic