Assessing the delivery of patient critical laboratory results to primary care providers.

Approximately 60% to 70% of all health care decisions are based on laboratory test results; therefore, it is important to ensure that patient laboratory results are communicated to the physician in a timely fashion. The objective of this study was to assess the delivery of critical laboratory results in outpatient physician offices in Delaware. Contact information for physician offices was obtained using the Highmark. Blue Cross Blue Shield. physician provider directory. A survey was created using a series of questions regarding the procurement and timely communication of critical laboratory results. Of the offices surveyed, 61.4% indicated that they did not utilize a standard operating procedure specifying who is able to receive the critical laboratory test results and how they should be delivered to the physician. These findings indicate that a change may be necessary to improve the way that critical test results are managed by physician offices.