Point of Care Testing KPI

KPI is a very interesting item when POC is considered. Much of our success with process improvement is directly linked to how others (our POC customers) are performing. In the past, I have focused on accreditation compliance issues such as using the correct patient ID when performing testing on interfaced test platforms. We needed to see improvements and used specific interventions like standard work aids and knowledge sharing documents. I have also used testing error rate. For example, the epoc blood gas systems do have a specific user injection. Our staff were not used to this and had a high injection error rate. Interventions came in the form of education (PowerPoints created to give extra learning), in person re education and email reminders. 

Good Luck!

Agree with Erika - I think KPI's need to be refreshed annually to coincide with the actual issues you deal with every day, and hopefully the next layer of improvement around that testing. For example, in the first year of implementation of a new POC test, you may want to have patient ID compliance, strip/cartridge waste, and competency assessment compliance as basic KPI's. Once a test is well established and your "in the green" every month for a while with those KPI's, you may want to dig into the clinical usefulness of that POC test and why it was implemented in the first place. For example, an ED may have requested POC Troponin in order to A) Reduce LOS and B) Respond faster and C) Reduce Mortality - so did they? This will take some partnership with ED leaders to accomplish and they should be engaged in the measurement phase where you may be providing them the patient ID's for all patients that had an ED Troponin.  If the goal was to reduce cost, you could look at that as part of your finance KPI. That one should account for labor reductions, wasted supply reductions, etc.

Thank you Erika and Silka for the reply. Very good suggestions were provided in making KPI for Point of Care Testing. I really appreciated the feedbacks.