Improving Quality in Noninvasive Testing by Certification and Accreditation

Abstract

Noninvasive testing had its roots in early research laboratories more than half a century ago. The first facility in this country was established at the Massachusetts General Hospital in 1946 and others appeared over the following years. The work focused on research efforts with little thought about providing routine clinical testing. By the 1960s arterial reconstructive procedures became increasingly frequent and there was a surge in interest in the clinical investigation of blood flow. The ability of the early measurement methods to provide objective noninvasive determination of vascular parameters attracted the interest of vascular surgeons and by the 1970s there was regular clinical use of a number of tests. What had been quiet (and often esoteric) research laboratories expanded, providing an increasing volume of routine examinations directed toward patient management. By the late 1970s the majority of hospital-based facilities were dedicated to routine clinical service rather than to research. At the same time, physicians took the testing modalities into the office, thus increasing the availability of the tests.