Disease-specific SOPs (1–20)
The CDC and IDSA now explicitly recommend against testing children <3 years old due to low prevalence. For all others, use the updated Centor criteria (0-4 points), with a new threshold: Centor 4 requires no test – treat empirically.
For every patient, regardless of the suspected condition, the following baseline must be established:
Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) are essential to provide clear, detailed descriptions of routine actions for healthcare providers to ensure standardized and uniform quality of clinical services. For 2026, many diagnostic protocols have been updated to reflect new clinical evidence and improved coding accuracy. Top 20 Common Diseases & Diagnostic Protocols
Monthly audits of diagnostic testing should answer: Is imaging being overused for low back pain? Is HbA1c being ordered without ruling out anemia? Feedback to clinicians improves adherence.