IBMS Chief Executive David Wells on ensuring home testing is implemented in a safe, effective and ethical manner.
Home testing is a rapidly evolving field that offers many potential benefits for biomedical science and public health. However, it also poses significant challenges and risks that need to be carefully addressed. As a professional body representing biomedical scientists and laboratory professionals, we have written to the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care to express our views and recommendations.
We believe that home testing can empower individuals to monitor their own health, increase access to testing services, reduce the burden on healthcare systems, and facilitate early diagnosis and treatment of diseases. However, we also recognise that home testing is not a substitute for professional laboratory testing and that it requires proper quality assurance, regulation, education and oversight.
We urged the Secretary of State to ensure that any home testing products or services are validated, reliable, accurate and safe, that they comply with the relevant standards and guidelines, and that our workforce, experience, skills and know-how are central to the safe adoption of home testing.
We also asked them to support the development of a robust framework for home testing that includes clear criteria for eligibility, consent, confidentiality, reporting and follow-up. Furthermore, we requested that the Secretary of
State raises public awareness and understanding of home testing, while providing adequate resources and training for biomedical scientists and other healthcare professionals involved in home testing.
We hope that our letter will contribute to a constructive dialogue on home testing, and that it will help to balance the benefits and risks of this emerging technology. We stand ready to collaborate with the Secretary of State and other stakeholders to ensure that home testing is implemented in a safe, effective and ethical manner.
David Wells Chief Executive.
