Point of Care Testing program to be introduced to Kipling and three other communities
The Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) continues to strengthen access to rural emergency departments through the innovative point-of-care testing program. With the point-of-care testing program, trained health-care team members conduct rapid, on-site diagnostics for urgent tests so rural emergency departments can continue delivering timely patient care when lab professionals are unavailable.
The SHA recently extended point-of-care testing in Herbert, Shellbrook and Watrous. Over the coming weeks, the SHA is expanding the program further to include emergency departments in Kipling, Rosthern, Assiniboia, and Esterhazy through targeted investments from the Government of Saskatchewan. Emergency departments in Leader, Maple Creek, Wynyard, Kamsack and Shaunavon continue to actively use point-of-care testing when needed, ensuring residents in those communities benefit from seamless access to local emergency health services.
“Expanding point-of-care testing to more emergency rooms in rural communities in Saskatchewan means more patients will receive faster diagnosis and treatment closer to home,” Seniors and Rural and Remote Health Minister Lori Carr said. “We are thankful to all of our health care teams who are adopting this innovative approach to healthcare delivery that ensures necessary lab tests can continue to take place, ensuring improved outcomes for patients accessing emergency care.”
Since it was first introduced in 2023, point-of-care testing has supported local health-care teams in providing on-site emergency department services and as of November 24, 2025, has prevented 214 potential service disruptions.
“Point-of-care testing acts as an interim solution to support local health-care teams and physicians in making clinical decisions in emergency situations, ensuring that patients benefit from timely access to critical testing and prompt treatment as close to home as possible,” said Bryan Witt, Vice President of Provincial Clinical and Support Services, SHA. “We are grateful to our local health-care teams who are working hard to minimize service disruptions and ensure emergency department services remain available to Saskatchewan residents.”
Point-of-care testing results for critical diagnostics are delivered to physicians for assessment in under 30 minutes. There are several tests that can be performed using point-of-care testing technology, which include but are not limited to:
hemoglobin to evaluate anemia and blood loss;
white blood cell counts to determine the presence of infection;
urinalysis for assessing kidney function and detecting urinary tract infections; and,
cardiac markers to evaluate heart health.
Laboratory services are one of several components required to keep emergency departments operational. Together with the Virtual Physician program, which provides on-demand remote physician support when on site physicians are unavailable, the point-of-care testing program is part of an overall strategy to enhance access to rural and remote emergency departments while the SHA and provincial government remain committed to recruiting staff to rural laboratories.
Point-of-care testing will be available in Kipling by the beginning of December. All other communities will continue to be notified when point-of-care testing is available in their area.
