Diagnostic testing as a cost factor in teaching hospitals.

The interpretation of laboratory tests by resident physicians is an integral part of the process of medical education. Therefore, the resident's awareness of the validity, reliability, and usefulness of laboratory tests and their alternatives, coupled with an analytical dialog between the supervising attending physician and the resident can help limit the ordering of diagnostic tests to what is logically and scientifically appropriate. Such a dialog may partially address the issue of teaching cost-effectiveness within the graduate medical education curriculum.