Point of care pregnancy testing provides staff satisfaction but does not change ED length of stay

Point of care testing (POCT) is widely viewed as possibly improving ED care and reducing length of stay (LOS). However reports are mixed, and regulatory barriers complicate considerations. We studied a simple urine pregnancy assay (human chorionic gonadotropin—HCG). LOS was evaluated when HCG was moved from central lab (HCGLab) to POCT (HCGED) in 2 pre-post 3-month periods (958 HCGLab and 1075 HCGED). HCG patients were compared with a similar control group, and staff perceptions were evaluated. There was no change in LOS for HCG patients (36.8 v 50.85 min, P = .33), although there was one marginal finding of improved LOS for patients presenting with abdominal pain diagnosed as pregnant (P = .17). Staff (28/53 physicians, 18/81 nurses) reported HCGED as positive. POCT does not improve LOS for broad groups of patients, although POCT does change the ED environment. Further study is needed to evaluate how the information flow of POCT changes patient care.