Testing.com is designed to help you, the patient or caregiver, understand the what, why, and how of laboratory testing. To access the primary resources on this website, you can go to the full listings below:
To learn more about laboratory medicine in general and gain a greater understanding of how laboratory testing can impact your healthcare, read the following in-depth articles. These patient resources are intended to help you navigate the testing process, provide context for the tests that you may have done and give you a better understanding of your test results.
As health care consumers have taken on more responsibility for their health, increased attention has been given to the value of preventive medicine. This article discusses how you can take an active role in your health care, offering general suggestions…
When you have lab testing done, you should feel comfortable in finding out why the test needs to be done, how it will be done, and what your doctor expects to learn from it. Read this article to learn how to…
High standards of quality for clinical laboratories are maintained by federal and state government, laboratory professional organizations, and individual laboratories themselves.
In this article, you can learn about laboratory-developed tests, also called "LDTs", that are developed, evaluated, and validated within one particular laboratory. They are not distributed or sold to any other labs or healthcare facilities to perform on their own.…
The majority of laboratory tests in use today are commercial lab tests, those that are are manufactured, marketed, and sold in volume as kits to multiple laboratories and other healthcare facilities. In this article, you can learn how the U.S.…
Forensic testing is the gathering of data for analysis and for use in legal proceedings, depending on the laws of particular jurisdictions. Learn how forensic testing differs from clinical laboratory testing, including the special training required for lab personnel and…
Learn about transfusion medicine and blood banking. Transfusion medicine is the branch of medicine that is concerned with the process of collecting (donation), testing, processing, storing, and transfusing blood and its components. It is a cornerstone of emergency and surgical…
Learn about point-of-care testing (POCT), which encompasses any laboratory tests that are performed at or near a patient and at the site where care or treatment is provided. Point-of-care test results are typically available relatively quickly so that they can…
