The Future of Diagnosis: Navigating Uncertainty

In the diagnostic process, clinicians aim to identify timely and accurate explanations for patients’ symptoms. One of the challenges that clinicians face in this process is balancing the risk of underdiagnosis, for example by delaying or missing a relevant diagnosis, with the risk of overdiagnosis by conducting too many tests that can result in harm or in a diagnosis that does not benefit a patient. Making the best diagnostic decision requires physicians to communicate with their patients about the risks and benefits of the next steps specific to their personal situation while considering the effectiveness, efficiency, safety, and timeliness of the diagnostic options. Our conference in Europe will dive into the subtleties of navigating the uncertainty inherent in these situations.