Skilled Nursing Facilities Series: Diagnostic Stewardship

Activity description

This activity will introduce the concept of diagnostic stewardship, emphasizing how appropriate test selection impacts patient care. Learners will explore the phases of diagnostic stewardship — pre-analytic, analytic and post-analytic — and learn the importance of pre-test probability in guiding test decisions. Real-world examples will illustrate common pitfalls and best practices in ordering diagnostic tests.

This activity is designed to meet the educational needs of nurse practitioners, nurses, PAs, case managers, physicians, psychologists, social workers and other health care providers who have an interest in the concept of diagnostic stewardship.

At the end of this activity, participants should be able to:

  • Define diagnostic stewardship and explain its role in improving patient outcomes through appropriate test utilization.
  • Describe the 3 phases of diagnostic stewardship (pre-analytic, analytic and post-analytic) and identify key considerations in each phase.
  • Apply the concept of pre-test probability to determine when diagnostic testing is clinically appropriate.
  • Recognize common scenarios where test results may be chronically abnormal and discuss strategies to avoid unnecessary or misleading testing.

Provided by
This activity is provided by Optum Health Education and Senior Community Care – Optum Home and Community.

Commercial support
No commercial support was received for this activity.

Required hardware/software
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Activity summary
Available credit: 
  • 1.00 AMA - Physicians
  • 1.00 ANCC - Nurses
  • 1.00 Attendance - General Attendance
  • 1.00 ASWB - Social Workers
Activity opens: 
12/19/2025
Activity expires: 
12/19/2028
Rating: 
0

Presenters
Laurent Adler, MD 
SCC – Optum Home & Community Care Delivery

Randy Herbert, NP
SCC – Optum Home & Community Care Delivery

Sing Palat, MD 
SCC – Optum Home & Community Care Delivery

Activity planners
Rebecca Gleason, RN
Clinical Activity Manager
Optum Health Education

Disclosures of relevant financial relationships
In accordance with the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education's (ACCME) Standards for Integrity and Independence in Accredited Continuing Education, Optum Health Education (OHE) requires all those in control of educational content to disclose their financial relationships with ineligible companies within the prior 24 months. Ineligible companies are defined by the ACCME as companies whose primary business is producing, marketing, selling, re-selling, or distributing health care products used by or on patients. Individuals must disclose all financial relationships, regardless of the amount, with ineligible companies and regardless of their view of the relevance of the relationship to the education. OHE ensures that the content is independent of commercial bias.

The activity faculty and planners have no financial relationships to disclose.

Method for calculating CE credit
CE credit was calculated by the complexity of content.

Accreditation statement
Joint Provider LogoIn support of improving patient care, this activity has been planned and implemented by Optum Health Education and Senior Community Care – Optum Home and Community. Optum Health Education is jointly accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), to provide continuing education for the health care team.

Credit designation statements
Nurses
The participant will be awarded up to 0.50 contact hour(s) of credit for attendance and completion of supplemental materials.

Physicians
Optum Health Education designates this enduring activity for a maximum of 0.50 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

Social workers
ACE ABSW LogoAs a Jointly Accredited Organization, Optum Health Education is approved to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Organizations, not individual courses, are approved under this program. State and provincial regulatory boards have the final authority to determine whether an individual course may be accepted for continuing education credit. Optum Health Education maintains responsibility for this course. Social workers completing this course receive 0.50 continuing education credits.

Attendance
A certificate of attendance will be provided to learners upon completion of activity requirements, enabling participants to register with licensing boards or associations that have not been preapproved for credits. To apply for credit types not listed above, participants should use the procedure established by the specific organization from which they wish to obtain credit.

Available Credit

  • 1.00 AMA - Physicians
  • 1.00 ANCC - Nurses
  • 1.00 Attendance - General Attendance
  • 1.00 ASWB - Social Workers
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