The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) is currently promoting a national campaign to increase awareness about patient safety. The program, which encourages patients to actively participate in their healthcare, was recently expanded to focus on clinical laboratories. Specifically, the program urges patients to “speak up” if they have questions about the lab tests being performed or how their results will be communicated to the doctor.

More generally, the “Speak Up” program encourages you to: 

• Speak up if you have questions or concerns, and if you don't understand, ask again. It's your body and you have a right to know. 
• Pay attention to the care you are receiving. Make sure you're getting the right treatments and medications by the right health care professionals. Don't assume anything. 
• Educate yourself about your diagnosis, the medical tests you are undergoing, and your treatment plan. 
• Ask a trusted family member or friend to be your advocate. 
• Know your lab results. 
• Use a clinical laboratory that has undergone a rigorous on-site evaluation against established state-of-the-art quality and safety standards, such as that provided by JCAHO. 
• Participate in all decisions about your treatment. You are the center of the health care team.

The JCAHO program is based on research that has shown patients who take part in decisions about their health care are more likely to have better outcomes.

At Lab Tests Online, we support the mission of the “Speak Up” program. Our goal as a public education web site has been to provide you, as patients and caregivers, with the kind of detailed information you need in order to ask specific questions and to better understand the answers you receive about your laboratory tests. Our approach is that the more you know, the more confident you will be when “speaking up” with your doctor.

For more information on the Speak Up program, visit the JCAHO’s web site at http://www.jcaho.org or download a free copy of their brochure at http://www.jcaho.org/speakup_lab.pdf.