UAE: 80% of doctors' decisions rely on laboratory results, medical experts highlight

A medical expert based in the UAE stresses on the importance of laboratory medicine as 80 per cent of a doctor's decisions depend on laboratory results. This increases the need to permanently upgrade laboratories.

Dr Rania Badir, Executive Medical Director of Abu Dhabi-based Life Diagnostics Laboratories said failure to ensure that laboratory doctors are familiar and equipped with modern methods of examination and diagnosis may lead to negative results that are reflected on the patient, the doctor and laboratories.

“Innovation in laboratory technology, which includes both new tests and advances in equipment and testing techniques, has made testing more efficient and automated,” she said at the 2022 AACC Middle East conference for that was held, at Grand Hyatt Hotel in Dubai.

The expert noted that laboratories and clinics should implement up-to-date laboratory testing methods, technologies, and data-driven approaches in preanalytical, analytical, and postanalytical phases of sample handling.

“It is critical for laboratory workers to be equipped with skills on the use of modern technologies in conducting different clinical laboratory tests,” said Badir.

Dr Hisham Shams, a member of the scientific committee of the AACC Middle East conference said that personalised medicine and molecular biology have witnessed a great development in the world of laboratories during the past five years.

“We anticipate that further development will occur in laboratory medicine over the next five years will focus on the development of diagnostic devices that will enable the patient to perform a set of procedures and a large number of analyses is at home,” he said.

Shams explained that among the most important challenges faced by laboratory medicine worldwide is the scarcity of qualified cadres who can undertake the work of advanced tests at the present time.

“There is need to standardise the approved standards for the tools used in conducting laboratory tests so that the numbers and results of tests do not differ from one laboratory to another,” he said adding that also, the presence of a reference measurement of the samples is considered a stretch.

The two-day conference was organised by Abu Dhabi-based Life Diagnostics, in partnership with American Association for Clinical Chemistry AACC.

The conference which was attended by physicians, lab supervisors, lab managers, medical technologists and others highlighted the latest technical developments in the field of medical laboratories and the latest technologies used in diagnosing and selecting the appropriate treatment based on the patient's genetic fingerprint, which greatly contributes to ensuring the optimal response to treatment and improving the quality of life of patients.

The experts discussed ways of incorporating laboratory management strategies that enhance workflows and support accurate and effective testing to improve treatment decisions and patient outcomes.

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