Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2009 Jul 1;3(4):672-6.
doi: 10.1177/193229680900300409.

Usefulness of point-of-care testing in the treatment of diabetes in an underserved population

Sandra Leal  1 , Marisa Soto-Rowen
Affiliations

Usefulness of point-of-care testing in the treatment of diabetes in an underserved population

Sandra Leal et al. J Diabetes Sci Technol. .

Abstract

Background: The purpose of this article was to communicate our experience with point-of-care testing (POCT) using Bayer's A1CNow+ device to test glycated hemoglobin (A1C) in the management of diabetes and to share the observations of our quality control efforts.

Methods: Forty-seven patients' POCT samples were compared with laboratory samples to determine the validity of the POCT sample being drawn. Data collected represent a 10-month time period that were drawn on-site with the following distribution: 36 samples were drawn the same day, 7 samples were drawn 1 day later, 3 samples were drawn within 3 days, and 1 sample was drawn 4 days later. Although all samples were collected on-site, some of the samples were sent to other local branches of nationally recognized laboratories for analysis.

Results: The range of A1C results for the POCT group was 5.6 to >13%. The range of A1C results for the laboratory-drawn group was 5 to 12.6%. Twenty-four patients had laboratory results that read lower than the result obtained in the clinic, with an A1C range of 5 to 12.6%, and two patients had laboratory results that read exactly the same as the result obtained in the clinic when using POCT. These two individuals had A1C results of 9.1 and 12.6%. Analysis of data collected determined an r value of 0.918 demonstrating agreement between the POCT samples and the laboratory samples.

Conclusions: POCT with the A1CNow+ is an effective, economical tool for use in a pharmacist-based diabetes clinic that serves a high-risk underserved population. POCT allows the pharmacist the ability to use on-site results to inform patients of their progress, modify their therapy immediately with an immediate face-to-face opportunity to assure understanding, and provide a self-management goal.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Pearson correlation of clinic A1C and laboratory A1C = 0.918. P value = 0.000.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. American Diabetes Association (ADA) Diabetes statistics. Available from: http://www.diabetes.org/diabetes-statistics.jsp.
    1. USA Today. Study: cost of diabetes $218B. Available from: http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2008-11-18-diabetes-cost_N.htm.
    1. Kost GJ. Guidelines for point-of-care testing. Improving patient outcomes. Am J Clin Pathol. 1995;104(4 Suppl 1):S111–S127. - PubMed
    1. Rust G, Gailor M, Daniels E, McMillan-Persaud B, Strothers H, Mayberry R. Point-of-care testing to improve glycemic control. Int J Health Care Qual Assur. 2008;21(3):325–335. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Barr VJ, Robinson S, Marin-Link B, Underhill L, Dotts A, Ravensdale D, Salivaras S. The expanded Chronic Care Model: an integration of concepts and strategies from population health promotion and the Chronic Care Model. Hosp Quart. 2003;7(1):73–82. - PubMed

Publication types

Substances

LinkOut - more resources