Decision making by pathologists. A strategy for curtailing the number of inappropriate tests.

Studies indicate that many laboratory tests are performed unnecessarily. We devised a strategy that proved very effective in curtailing unnecessary performance of immunoelectrophoretic analyses, based on the assumption of a decision-making role by the pathologist in rejecting a request for immunoelectrophoresis when serum protein electrophoresis and quantitative immunoglobulin levels are normal. The adoption of this policy resulted in a 67% reduction in the number of immunoelectrophoretic analyses performed in our laboratory. Thus, the assumption of a decision-making role by pathologists can be extremely effective in decreasing the number of inappropriate laboratory tests.