Laboratory medicine: possible shortage of diagnostic devices is feared. Also because of the war

There is a real risk that the raw materials to perform the diganostic tests may be lacking. The alarm was raised by Confindustria Medical Devices and now the Italian Society of Clinical Biochemistry and Clinical Molecular Biology-Laboratory Medicine (SiBioc) echoes it. The reason? There is not a single cause but several contributing causes, including war, as the scientific society explains. In fact, in the last two years, Covid has required a huge amount of diagnostic tests and to this is added the banning of plastic, which has not yet been replaced by another material and makes it difficult to find test tubes. Furthermore, delays have recently been recorded due to the alternative routes that the planes must follow: most of the containers and reagents, in fact, come from South Korea, but for over a month it has no longer been possible to fly over Russia and Ukraine.

This is why biologists, doctors, chemists and technicians working in clinical laboratories ask for the attention of health institutions to identify criteria and procedures to support medical laboratories that could face emergency situations due to the lack of diagnostics and technologies, defining priorities for assistance and care.

The risk of shortage of medical devices

“The alarm raised by Confindustria Medical Devices on the difficulty of procuring in vitro diagnostics and the consequent difficulty in satisfying existing contracts, both in terms of volumes and type of supply and of economic value, is of extreme concern”, says Tommaso Trenti, president of SiBioC. If, as a scientific society, we understand the risk for the diagnostic companies of being included in the computer records of the Anac reported for breach of contract, in addition to all the difficulties due to the increase in costs and with the consequent request for revision of contracts, the concern for medical laboratories is of having to manage a situation without being able to act on the causes that created it, explain the experts: “The shortage of supplies makes it potentially impossible for medical laboratories to meet clinical needs, with negative repercussions on the patient, on the entire national health system and on access a lle care “.

Medicine, a site to understand reports, exams and diagnoses

by Barbara Orrico

02 December 2021

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A unified strategy

How then can clinical needs be met and the quality of diagnostic services always guaranteed at levels of excellence? How can medical laboratories continue to carry out diagnostic tests while respecting patient safety? “The only possible answer – continues Trenti – is to define a strategy of planned actions and priorities recognized with all the stakeholders – Ministry of Health, Ministry of Economic Development, Regional Councils, Scientific Societies, Patient Associations – to provide a clear direction to prevent further critical issues to the detriment of the system of care in its joints and of the citizens “.

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