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Fingerstick biometric screenings

What is a fingerstick screening and what does it test for? 

A fingerstick screening is a way to get a quick snapshot of your overall health. Fingerstick health screenings require just a few drops of blood, and results are available in as little as 15 minutes, which makes this screening modality a good option for certain work site wellness events. During an on-site fingerstick blood collection, the provider uses a lancet to stick a participant’s finger and collect approximately 4 drops of blood for immediate analysis.

Quest's fingerstick screenings include biometric measurements (height, weight, body mass index, and blood pressure) and the popular Lipid + Glucose panel to screen for total cholesterol, HDL cholesterol, triglycerides, calculated LDL, cholesterol/HDL ratio, and glucose. Non-fasting panels, and specialized tests, including cotinine (for nicotine) and hemoglobin A1c, are also available upon request.

How accurate is a fingerstick blood test? 

Fingerstick blood testing is seen as informational as opposed to clinical, since the testing is not being performed in a laboratory. However, accuracy of fingerstick screenings from Quest using the PTS CardioChek Plus strongly correlate with the reference venipuncture laboratory method, as shown by the R values for each of the parameters, which range between 0.89 and 0.99. Fasting glucose, HDL, and total cholesterol are comparable to venipuncture results when using proper collection technique.

Fingerstick screenings from Quest Diagnostics

A key benefit of fingerstick screenings is that participants leave events with their results in-hand. The Quest Diagnostics fingerstick screening model also offers several additional benefits that improve the participant experience and distinguish it, such as a single-station model for a personalized experience, an on-site results review, and the ability for a paperless on-site event.

Single-station model:

After signing in at a Quest Diagnostics fingerstick screening event, the participant proceeds through all areas of screening, (collection, biometric measurements, and results review) with the same provider, providing a more personal and streamlined experience. To meet the diverse needs of our clients, Quest offers fingerstick screenings through its extensive network of more than 10,000 mobile examiners nationwide (including bilingual examiners when requested).

How long do fingerstick screenings take?

Quest Diagnostics uses an FDA-cleared and CLIA-waived analyzer that meets National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) guidelines for accuracy and precision. The entire screening process, including fingerstick, biometrics, and review of results takes just 10 to 15 minutes. If a participant has abnormally low or high glucose, additional collections will be done to confirm the results. If results remain abnormal, the examiner will alert the participant, and advise them to follow up with their personal physician.

Immediate “results review” with a Quest provider:

After their specimen and biometric measurements are collected, the examiner goes through each result, indicating whether it falls inside or outside of recommended reference ranges. The examiner performing the screening is HIPAA-trained to share screening results with the participant in a confidential way. This “teachable moment” and immediacy of results can lead participants to a greater understanding of their own health risks, as well as more urgency to improve their results.

Interactive fingerstick results brochure:

Each participant leaves the event with a brochure completed by their examiner that shows their results, provides definitions, and identifies testing reference ranges. Brochures support fasting and non-fasting test panels, and both versions are available in Spanish upon request. MyFingerstick Screening Results brochure provides an immediate action step for the participant to schedule a follow-up appointment with their personal physician to review their results and begin making changes that may improve their health.

Powering healthy choices

On-site health coaching

On-site health coaching from Quest helps enhance fingerstick health screenings by giving your employees the opportunity to ask a Health Coach questions immediately after receiving their results.

On-site health coaching

On-site health coaching from Quest Diagnostics helps empower health choices during and after an on-site screening event. During the session, a Health Coach completes a health review with the participant, helping him or her to set a health goal and outline an action plan. The personalized action plan can include information on other employer-specific offerings to help drive engagement and promote a holistic view of well-being.

Qscreen™:

With Qscreen, Quest Diagnostics adds greater scheduling efficiency and flexibility by eliminating paperwork and extending the scheduling window up to the night before an event.

Qscreen also provides for enhanced data quality and significantly improved turnaround times. All quality assurance (QA) requirements are met before a single participant sits down with an examiner. Embedding QA into on-site event preparation reduces the risk of non-reportable results, and more importantly, allows for faster results processing, with results delivery to authorized third-party partners in as little as one day.

See how Quest can help you tailor your screening program to fit the needs of your employee populations

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