Bioingeniøren (Jun 2018)
Relevant research areas for biomedical laboratory scientists in medical biochemistry
Abstract
Introduction. Biomedical laboratory science is a somewhat invisible profession. To identify research areas within biomedical laboratory science, could contribute to make the profession more visible. More research within biomedical laboratory science is important to evaluate new treatment techniques, establish evidence-based practice and improve patient treatment. This project is the second part of a study aiming at determining research priorities within biomedical laboratory sciences in Norway. In the first stage of this study (part 1), we mapped which themes biomedical laboratory scientists within medical biochemistry considered to be potential research areas. The themes that came up were linked to patient related challenges, organizational/psychosocial aspects, analyzing/quality assurance and the future of biomedical laboratory science. In this part of the study (part 2), we have moved on to investigate which research areas biomedical laboratory scientists in medical biochemistry consider most important. Material and methods. The Delphi – method was applied to establish consensus. Based on the earlier mapped research areas in part 1 of the study, as well as other studies, a questionnaire presenting 33 relevant research areas was developed. The questionnaire was distributed to 27 medical biochemistry laboratories. By using a Likert scale, the respondents graded the importance of the 33 areas related to the patient, collaboration with colleagues and biomedical science in generally, respectively. Results. In total 21 laboratories answered the questionnaire, giving a response rate of 77.8 %. The results show that research areas within the categories pre-analysis and analysis were ranked as most important. Some of the highest ranked research areas are to interpret other health professional’s procedural knowledge related to quality assurance and if other health professionals are conscious of the importance of pre-analytical variables. To strengthen the position of biomedical laboratory sciences and improve point-of-care testing were also considered to be relevant research areas.
