Computer predictions of abnormal test results. Effects on outpatient testing

• HIT Description: Regenstrief Medical Record CPOE system used to present predictions of the likelihood of an abnormality on eight commonly ordered diagnostic tests at the time that clinicians ordered that test for specific patients More info...
  
• Purpose of Study: Decrease use of laboratory tests
  
• Years of study: 1984-1985
  
• Study Design: RCT
  
• Outcomes: Utilization and costs of laboratory testing
  

• Settings: This study was performed in the general medicine practice of the Regenstrief Health Center, which is staffed by General Internal Medicine faculty and Internal Medicine house staff.
• Intervention: At the time of this study, ordering for all lab tests had to be entered into computer workstations. Half of each clinician's patients were randomized, such that at the time the clinician ordered a lab test, the HIT system displayed the probability of the test being abnormal based on predictive equations that used the individual patient's specific data.
• Changes in healthcare costs: During the six-month period of the study, 9496 patients visited the clinic more than 23,000 times. The study reported that patients in the intervention group had charges that were 8.8% less than control patients: $11.18 versus $12.27 (not stated as to year, presumably in 1988 dollars).