The Benefit of Point-of-Care Diagnostic Testing

Over the years, the number and types of point-of-care tests have grown dramatically and include everything from HIV/AIDS diagnostics to blood glucose tests to screenings for influenza or Group A Streptococcus.

Point-of-care testing is designed to be used in near-patient settings such as urgent care clinics, physician offices, emergency rooms, and even, in some cases, retail pharmacies. For many patients, it may seem quite ordinary to receive a quick diagnostic test during the course of a consultation. Traditionally, however, centralized laboratories—removed from the patient—have performed this diagnostic testing.

Benefits of point-of-care testing

Point-of-care diagnostic testing is generally more convenient for patients. In fact, 77 percent of patients prefer onsite lab services, and 67% of patients say they would drive up to 20 minutes to visit a clinic with onsite lab services.¹

Additionally, the rapid results offered by point-of-care testing may reduce the need for follow-up visits—a benefit for patients and clinics alike. Quick answers can also inform timely treatment decisions and may diminish the use of unnecessary antibiotics. In outpatient settings, for example, the majority of antibiotics prescribed are associated with diagnoses of acute respiratory viral infections—and antibiotics are usually not recommended or effective for such infections.²

Which point-of-care diagnostics are right for your clinic?

Point-of-care testing certainly offers many benefits for patients and providers. But clinics need to answer a few questions before bringing on a new test. The most essential question is whether the test will benefit patient care. If so, can your clinic’s workflow accommodate the new test? When will the sample be collected and who will collect it? And finally, will the new test make sense from a cost perspective—for instance, will it improve patient satisfaction, enhance operational efficiency, or reduce unnecessary testing?

The BioFire^® FilmArray^® System

The BioFire System—which features integrated sample preparation, amplification, detection, and analysis—offers a range of infectious disease testing options for clinics.

The BioFire^® FilmArray^® 2.0 EZ Configuration system facilitates testing in near-patient settings like physician offices or urgent care clinics. The BioFire 2.0 EZ Configuration includes a simplified, intuitive user interface and a streamlined results report.

The BioFire^® FilmArray^® Torch can be used in CLIA-moderate clinics. The BioFire Torch is a fully integrated, random-access system that is scalable to meet varying testing volume demands. This high-throughput system is also simple to use, with a touchscreen interface, integrated barcode scanner, and LIS connectivity.

The Syndromic Approach for Point-of-Care Respiratory Testing

When patients present with respiratory symptoms, it’s nearly impossible to know the cause without the right testing. That’s because respiratory symptoms are similar and overlapping. A large number of pathogens can cause respiratory infections, so tests that only identify SARS-CoV-2, influenza, or RSV may not identify the true culprit.

Designed to run on the BioFire 2.0 EZ Configuration system, the BioFire^® Respiratory 2.1-EZ (RP2.1-EZ) Panel (EUA)* uses a syndromic approach to target a wide range of pathogens, including SARS-CoV-2. The BioFire RP2.1-EZ Panel (EUA) identifies 19 respiratory pathogens in one multiplex PCR test, with results in about 45 minutes.

Rapid, accurate, and comprehensive results may eliminate the need for serial tests or for sending tests to a reference laboratory. Fast point-of-care results may also enable patients to receive their results before the end of their visit. Importantly, the syndromic testing approach can help physicians make targeted treatment decisions and avoid the unnecessary use of antibiotics.

Gastrointestinal Testing in Point-of-Care Settings

BioFire’s syndromic approach is also advantageous for helping pinpoint the cause of infectious gastroenteritis. Several bacteria, viruses, and parasites can cause infections with very similar symptoms, making it challenging to determine the possible causative pathogen. What’s more, traditional testing methods are slow and labor intensive—and they may not even provide results—making them impractical in a point-of-care setting.

The CLIA-moderate BioFire^® FilmArray^® Gastrointestinal (GI) Panel, which can be run on the BioFire Torch, identifies 22 of the most common causes of gastroenteritis. All it takes is one test and one patient sample—and results are available in about an hour. In fact, the BioFire GI Panel has been shown to reduce the average time to result by 84%.³

Rapid results on a comprehensive menu of gastrointestinal pathogens may help reduce downstream testing and shorten the time to optimal therapy. Compared with traditional testing, the BioFire GI Panel increased targeted therapy by 41%.⁴ All of this may lead to greater patient satisfaction, improve workflow, and minimize unnecessary testing.

The Benefit of Point-of-Care Diagnostic Testing

Benefits of point-of-care testing

Which point-of-care diagnostics are right for your clinic?

The BioFire^® FilmArray^® System

The Syndromic Approach for Point-of-Care Respiratory Testing

Gastrointestinal Testing in Point-of-Care Settings

Learn More

How Investing in the BioFire^® FilmArray^® System Leads to Cost Savings Benefits

Get a Grip on What’s Making Patients Sick

The Benefit of Point-of-Care Diagnostic Testing

Benefits of point-of-care testing

Which point-of-care diagnostics are right for your clinic?

The BioFire® FilmArray® System

The Syndromic Approach for Point-of-Care Respiratory Testing

Gastrointestinal Testing in Point-of-Care Settings

Learn More

How Investing in the BioFire® FilmArray® System Leads to Cost Savings Benefits

Get a Grip on What’s Making Patients Sick

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The BioFire^® FilmArray^® System

How Investing in the BioFire^® FilmArray^® System Leads to Cost Savings Benefits