Improving Anticoagulation Therapy Using Point-of-Care Testing and a Standardized Protocol.

The article presents a quality-improvement initiative that aims to increase the proportion of patients taking warfarin, using point-of-care testing and a standardized protocol. It is noted that many patients in primary care need anticoagulation with warfarin for the prevention of venous and systemic embolisms. It is pointed out that attaining the goal of the international normalized ratio (INR) with warfarin is challenging.