AACC-led Collaboration Educates Millions of Patients and Increases Lab Visibility

AACC’s Lab Tests Online continues to be one of the premier health site on the Internet. Developed in collaboration with 16 other laboratory associations, Lab Tests Online effectively educates patients and their loved ones about their lab tests. At the same time, the peer-reviewed site teaches users about the critical role that testing plays in the practice of medicine. The site is also used regularly by laboratorians, physicians, and other medical professionals who need to quickly confirm their understanding of a test or to help them communicate about it with their patients.

Described in the media as “a masterfully simple page” and as one of the “smartest health sites on the web,” Lab Tests Online provides users with a growing number of detailed test descriptions, condition descriptions cross-linked by related tests, and feature articles on topics such as the meaning of reference ranges and key concepts in evaluating test reliability. In addition, the site includes an Ask the Lab section that enables users to send questions about their tests directly to a team of volunteer laboratory professionals from AACC and the American Society for Clinical Laboratory Science (ASCLS), which created and manages the service.

Currently, Lab Tests Online improves the health literacy of two million visitors per month by providing them with the concepts and language needed to discuss their tests more intelligently with their doctors. Lab Tests Online hosted its 100 millionth visitor in February 2011, and a mobile version of the site was launched in July 2011 for Apple’s i-Phone, i-Pad, and i-Touch, and Android phones and tablets.