The Role of Medical Laboratories in Implementing Value-Based Healthcare: Strategies for Saudi Arabia's Health Sector Transformation

Abstract

Value-based healthcare (VBHC) has emerged as a transformative approach for optimizing health system performance by aligning incentives with patient outcomes and cost-effectiveness. As Saudi Arabia's health sector undergoes significant reforms aimed at improving quality, efficiency, and sustainability, medical laboratories play a pivotal role in enabling the successful implementation of VBHC. This systematic review explores the strategies that medical laboratories in Saudi Arabia can adopt to support the realization of VBHC as part of the country's broader health sector transformation. A comprehensive search of electronic databases, including PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science, was conducted to identify relevant studies published between 2010 and 2024. The search strategy employed a combination of keywords related to value-based healthcare, medical laboratories, and Saudi Arabia. A total of 18 studies were included in the review after screening and eligibility assessment. The findings highlight several key areas where medical laboratories can contribute to VBHC, including standardizing diagnostic processes, enhancing data management and analytics capabilities, fostering multidisciplinary collaboration, and aligning laboratory services with clinical pathways. The review also identifies challenges and opportunities for implementing VBHC in Saudi Arabia's medical laboratory sector and proposes recommendations for policymakers, healthcare providers, and laboratory professionals to drive the successful adoption of VBHC principles.