Abstract
The delay in the delivery of laboratory results can be fatal and can even lead to the death of patients. This study was conducted at the clinical laboratory of the University Hospital of Kinshasa (UHK) from October 2020 to April 2021, aimed to evaluate the laboratory tests’ turnaround time (TAT) and to identify reasons for delay. TAT was quantified using a time and motion analysis approach. The evaluation of TAT consisted of comparing the overall intra-lab TAT with the suggested TAT using student t-test at 95% confidence intervals. Brainstorming was the root cause analysis tool used for identifying reasons for delay. In this study, the laboratory tests’ TATs were significantly higher (p < 0.001) comparing to international guidelines (60 minutes) and customers’ suggested TAT (120 minutes). Only 0.98% of the samples were reported within 60 minutes of patient reception and 1.47% within 120 minutes, i.e. an outlier rate of 98.5%. Root causes of delay related to Machinery, Management, Manpower, Materials, Method and Milieu. Because of many reasons, the laboratory is not meeting the established TAT. Preventive and curative measures must be undertaken to reduce the delay and improve the TAT.
Highlights
The healthcare industry is an aggregation and integration of sectors within the economic system that provides goods and services to treat patients with curative, preventive, rehabilitative, and palliative care
This study was conducted at the clinical laboratory of the University Hospital of Kinshasa (UHK) from October 2020 to April 2021, aimed to evaluate the laboratory tests’ turnaround time (TAT) and to identify reasons for delay
It was a hospital based prospective study conducted at the clinical laboratory of the University Hospital of Kinshasa (UHK) from October 2020 to April 2021
Summary
The healthcare industry ( called the medical industry or health economy) is an aggregation and integration of sectors within the economic system that provides goods and services to treat patients with curative, preventive, rehabilitative, and palliative care. In today’s world, the clinical laboratory is the heart of any hospital or healthcare system. It is responsible for greater than 70% of medical diagnoses and decisions made by physicians each year. From early detection and diagnosis of disease to individualized treatment plans based on a person’s unique genetic makeup, clinical laboratory testing is the key to improving healthcare quality and containing long-term health costs. It is critical that laboratory results are delivered in the shortest amount of time possible to allow rapid diagnosis and management of patients. More timely results in hospital labs have positive implications in at least five key areas: Optimized patient outcomes, reduced costs, better clinician satisfaction, higher patient satisfaction, better competitive position against other labs [1]
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