Making medical tests work for you: offering patients more choice
For the first time, patients will now have more choice about where, when and how they receive some of the most common medical tests.
New proposals published outline how patients will be able to choose where they receive essential tests, including blood tests and heart scans.
From April 2013, patients will be able to pick somewhere closer to home or near where they work, instead of having to go to the nearest available option. They will make these decisions in partnership with their doctor, who can help advise them on which choice would be most appropriate for them.