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Cepheid
Editorial Team
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December 03, 2024
ANTIMICROBIAL STEWARDSHIP
Impact Story
Point-of-care PCR Testing in the Emergency Department Allows for Faster Decision Making in Halle (Saale), Germany
On demand PCR results positively impacts patient triage
The emergency department of the Martha-Maria Halle-Dölau Hospital often had to wait 8 hours (or up to 24 hours on weekends) for PCR results for respiratory virus infections and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). The long wait times directly impacted patient and resource management, leading to unnecessary patient isolation or increased efforts in operating room management. By implementing the GeneXpert® system, the ED team is now able to obtain results within minutes rather than hours to diagnose, isolate, and treat emergency patients according to their on-demand PCR results.
Martha-Maria Halle-Dölau Hospital emergency department often had to wait 8 hours or up to 24 hours on weekends for PCR results because of working with an external microbiology lab for respiratory and MRSA testing. Until the results became available, patients were considered positive, and pre-emptive safety measures such as patient isolation were required. In the case of emergency surgery, additional surgical theatre equipment and cleanings were required which consequently blocked the theatre longer and impacted the entire operating room management.
The emergency department of the Martha-Maria Halle-Dölau Hospital needed to have the results of urgent respiratory and MRSA samples more quickly to allow for fast decision-making on patient isolation measures of admitted patients with respiratory symptoms and informed operation planning of emergency surgery patients.
By implementing fast respiratory and MRSA PCR testing using the GeneXpert® system directly in the emergency department, the ED team of the Martha-Maria Halle-Dölau Hospital now has access to on-demand, lab-quality PCR results 24/7.
Following the hospital protocol, emergency patients who are presenting respiratory symptoms, and emergency surgery patients, are tested by trained users at the point of care. This positively impacts the time needed for diagnosis and patient triage and ultimately the resource utilization in the ED and on the wards.
Emergency patients requiring surgery are now tested directly in the ED for MRSA and COVID-19. Having patient PCR results available before entering the surgical theater allows for safe operational management and effective resource utilization by avoiding additional protection gear or theatre cleanings for negative tested patients.
VD. In Vitro Diagnostic Medical Device. May not be available in all countries.
Disclaimer:
Projections and realized results are specific to the institution where they were obtained and may not reflect the results achievable at other institutions.
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