Improved diagnostic policy for respiratory tract infections essential for patient management in the emergency department

Establishing an optimal diagnostic policy for patients with respiratory tract infections, at the emergency department (ED) of a university hospital in The Netherlands. Adult patients were sampled at admission, during the respiratory season (2014–2015). The FilmArray-RP was implemented at the clinical virology laboratory. Diagnostics were provided from 8 am to 10 pm, weekends included. 436/492 (89%) results were available while patients were still at the ED. Median TAT from admission to test result was 165 min (IQR: 138–214). No antibiotics were prescribed in 94/207 (45%) patients who tested positive for a virus. 185/330 (56%) hospitalized patients did not need admission with isolation measures. The value-based measure, expressed in euro–hour (€h), increased to tenfold compared with previous policy. An optimal policy is essential for patient management, by providing timely, reliable diagnostics.