Inconsistent results and delayed diagnosis

Dr. Van Gool, an ENT physician with extensive experience in both university medical centres and private practice, highlights a critical gap in allergy diagnostics. In primary care, GPs (general practitioners) face significant challenges in diagnosing allergies effectively. Manual skin prick tests require specialised expertise and are labour-intensive, leading to variability in results and delays in diagnosis.  

“Many patients remain undiagnosed or receive trial-and-error treatments relying on less accurate alternatives, such as blood tests,” she explains.  The situation is equally challenging in secondary care, where specialists like allergists and clinical biologists are overwhelmed by high demand. “Without a streamlined collaboration between GPs and specialists, access to timely and accurate allergy diagnostics becomes even more difficult,” she adds.

Breaking barriers to timely allergy diagnosis with S.P.A.T.

Dr. Van Gool aims to implement a streamlined collaboration workflow with GPs, using the S.P.A.T. (Skin Prick Automated Test) device. Through this collaboration, GPs will refer patients to her private practice, where automated testing is performed more efficiently, providing standardised, reliable, and digital results.

This approach is similar to radiology workflows. “Just as GPs can request a radiological exam and receive a report, S.P.A.T. enables primary care providers to request allergy diagnostics and receive standardised results. This aligns with the shift toward evidence-based and precision medicine, making timely, accurate diagnostics more accessible,” Dr. Van Gool explains.

Bridging the gap between GPs and specialists, while improving patient care

Integrating S.P.A.T. into her practice has already shown promising results for Dr. Van Gool. Patients benefit from faster access to accurate diagnostics and experience less discomfort compared to the traditional manual testing method.  “Parents often tell me how relieved they are that their child doesn’t need to endure multiple pricks,” says Dr. Van Gool. “Even adults who’ve undergone manual testing remark on how much quicker and less stressful the process has become.”

Importantly, the tests can be performed without requiring a full specialist consultation. "With S.P.A.T., we rely less on highly trained personnel, as the device itself outperforms manual methods, while physicians can easily validate the results suggested by the AI-Assisted Readout, with just a few clicks," she adds.