Nova Scotia Health and IWK Health (IWK) have collaborated to develop a consistent, provincial policy leveraging the full scope and range of providers to define who is authorized to request diagnostic tests. The new policy, Diagnostic Test Requests – Authorized Prescriber Policy, was published in January 2024 on OP3 and became effective January 30, 2024.
The overall goal is to support quality and patient safety by clearly defining:
- which health care professionals are authorized to prescribe diagnostic tests
- the scope of what various prescribers is permitted to order/request
- the circumstances or conditions under which this prescribing is authorized and
- the need for appropriate communication and follow-up with respect to results, including rapid response to critical results.
A memo providing further details and a frequently asked questions document (FAQs) are included in the resource attachments below.
