With health care a hot topic in the media these days, savvy consumers are wise to act as their own advocates, ask necessary questions and become educated about what options exist. For example, if a medical professional recommends having a blood test, individuals will benefit from exploring what testing facilities are available and find one which best suits their needs. However, before patients can explore their options, they need a basic understanding of what questions to ask. The study of pathology specializes in two areas: anatomic pathology, which focuses on the examination of tissue (including pap smears), and clinical pathology, which focuses on the testing of blood and other bodily fluids. A pathologist is a doctor who specializes in interpreting laboratory tests and evaluating bodily fluid and tissue samples for disease.
“Choosing a pathology lab is not unlike choosing a doctor. The physician pathologist that interprets your biopsy or Pap smear is as important to you as the provider who sees you, as is the quality of the lab that performs your blood testing,” said Dr. Fabien Baksh, who has over 20 years of experience in the pathology field and who, along with wife Dr. Shashi Baksh, co-founded Lancaster’s Pennsylvania Specialty Pathology. When choosing a lab facility, helpful questions include:
• What kinds of tests are performed?
• Where is the testing performed?
• Who is performing the testing?
• How will my doctor and I get my results and how long will it take?
• How much do these tests cost? Unfortunately, the last question may be a major concern for some consumers, as these tests can vary in price.
“Medical testing can range in cost from affordable to astronomical. For individuals with no insurance, high deductibles, or out-of-network insurance, this is a serious issue, ” commented Dr. Fabien Baksh, citing a study recently done in California which demonstrated that the pricing for a single blood cholesterol test can range from $10 to $10,169 dollars – a 1,000 times difference. “Laboratory testing (and some other areas of medical care) are rare areas where you are asked to agree to pay for a product or service without being told the cost. It is like going to a store, choosing the items you need and then agreeing to pay for them before being told the cost. Patients should at least have a reasonable idea of what they are expected to pay before testing is performed,” says Dr. Shashi Baksh.
