Management of Outpatient Test Results

From published literature, we identified four key steps in the management of test results:
1. Tracking all results to make sure they are received and reviewed by an appropriate person in the practice.
2. Notification of all patients of both normal and abnormal test results in a timely and convenient (for both practice and patients) manner.
3. Documentation of patient notification in the patient’s record.
4. Tracking patients with significantly abnormal test results requiring additional testing or follow-up to be sure that occurs.