A test performed in a pharmacy using a simple finger prick can now result in a medically validated report, digitally signed by the San Raffaele Hospital laboratory and returned to the patient at the pharmacy in real time.
This is the latest development in the project “Pharmacy Analysis Reporting. Pharmacy and Hospital Laboratory – Together for a New Integrated Pathway: Close. Fast. Validated.” The initiative stems from a partnership between Roche Diagnostics and IRCCS San Raffaele Hospital and was presented at a press conference attended by Federfarma, the Federation of Italian Pharmacists’ Associations (FOFI), the Italian Society of Clinical Pathology and Laboratory Medicine (SIPMeL) and Cittadinanzattiva.
Following a pilot phase involving five pharmacies in Lombardy and Piedmont, the new pharmacy-based test reporting service is now being extended to participating pharmacies nationwide.
An up-to-date list of participating pharmacies is available at www.quipuoi.com.
The tests currently offered through the service include lipid profile monitoring (total cholesterol, HDL, LDL and triglycerides) to assess cardiovascular risk, blood glucose and glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) measurements for diabetes prevention and monitoring, and C-reactive protein (CRP) testing to help identify inflammatory conditions.
The service embodies an integrated healthcare model based on collaboration between the two organisations and enabled by Roche Diagnostics’ technological infrastructure. It combines the extensive pharmacy network – a key local access point for identifying healthcare needs – with the central role of the hospital laboratory in overseeing clinical data and validating test results.
Presented at the press conference, the initiative is designed to support prevention by enabling the early identification of disease-related risk factors and facilitating referrals for further clinical investigations. These can be carried out at specialised centres, at the discretion of the treating physician. The shared protocol and hospital-based validation process are intended to ensure test quality and the reliability of the resulting reports.
The complementarity of the stakeholders involved is central to this integrated approach, which supports the sustainable development of the healthcare system. Pharmacies provide an accessible first point of contact for citizens and can help direct patients towards appropriate hospital services. The laboratory retains clinical responsibility for validating results and ensuring the quality of clinical data, while the technological infrastructure connects the two. This enables patients to receive a medically validated laboratory report at a participating pharmacy close to home, within minutes.
True innovation in healthcare is not just about technology; it is about building new care models around citizens’ clinical needs. This vision underpins our collaboration with Roche Diagnostics, which has enabled us to bring the quality and expertise of the hospital laboratory closer to the public. San Raffaele oversees the entire process and clinically validates the reports, contributing to a new model of integrated, accessible and local healthcare.
Federico Esposti, Strategic Director of IRCCS San Raffaele Hospital.
The collaboration between San Raffaele, pharmacies and Roche brings together clinical expertise, local accessibility and innovation. This new reporting model translates that synergy into an integrated care pathway which, through the extensive pharmacy network, brings prevention closer to the public and simplifies access without compromising the quality and reliability of laboratory testing. It also reflects the understanding that collaboration among stakeholders across the healthcare ecosystem is essential to translating industry-led innovation into tangible contributions to the sustainable development of healthcare
Massimo Locatelli, Director of the Laboratory Medicine Service at IRCCS San Raffaele Hospital.
At participating pharmacies, the tests are performed using professional, certified Roche near-patient testing (NPT) diagnostic devices that comply with European In Vitro Diagnostic Medical Devices Regulation (IVDR) requirements. The data collected by the pharmacist are immediately transmitted through the digital platform provided by Roche to the San Raffaele Hospital laboratory, which checks the quality of the data and validates the results.
Once digitally signed by the laboratory director, the report is sent back to the pharmacy and made available to the patient in real time. Throughout the process, the pharmacy follows a protocol developed by San Raffaele Hospital, which includes quality controls and is supported by an IT system designed to prevent tests from being performed without the required steps being followed. The pharmacy can help identify risk factors for certain conditions, providing information that may assist physicians in determining the most appropriate diagnostic pathway.
The decentralisation of healthcare requires rigorous diagnostic reliability. Through the ‘Pharmacy Analysis Reporting’ pilot project, we combine the accessibility of pharmacies with the clinical oversight of San Raffaele Hospital, ensuring high standards and real-time validated reports. We aim to strengthen the role of local communities in prevention and in supporting the sustainability of the healthcare system.
Ramiro Pena, Healthcare Development Director at Roche Diagnostics Italy.
The new service is part of the development of the Farmacia dei Servizi (Service Pharmacy) model in Italy. It combines the accessibility of community pharmacies with the clinical validation provided by hospital laboratories, while strengthening the pharmacist’s role in decentralised diagnostic pathways. In line with the memorandum of understanding between FOFI and the National Federation of Orders of Biologists (FNOB) to strengthen the local diagnostic network, the initiative reinforces the pharmacy’s position as a healthcare facility increasingly integrated into Italy’s national health system.
“Prevention starts at community level, and pharmacists play a key role in the early identification of cardiometabolic risk factors, making health checks more accessible to citizens. This is a concrete commitment to reducing the impact of chronic conditions on patients and the healthcare system. The project demonstrates the value of the local presence of pharmacies and our profession’s ability to combine accessible services with high standards of quality and safety, through a rigorous operating protocol shared with the hospital and supported by technology. This is a priority for pharmacists and a guarantee for citizens: rapid and reliable tests, with clinically validated results provided remotely, to guide patients towards the necessary diagnostic investigations and treatment pathways,” commented Andrea Mandelli, President of FOFI.
The partnership between Roche Diagnostics and San Raffaele Hospital therefore proposes an integrated, community-based healthcare model in which hospitals, laboratories and pharmacies work together, supported by technology, to provide citizens with reliable testing close to home.
“Bringing healthcare closer to citizens means making care pathways more accessible, straightforward and timely. The project, developed through collaboration between community pharmacies, Milan’s San Raffaele Hospital and Roche, is a practical example of how innovation can foster new care models that combine the expertise of specialist laboratories with the extensive reach of pharmacies. Industry also plays an essential role by providing innovative technologies and solutions that bring prevention services closer to the public while ensuring clinical appropriateness, safety and quality. For SIPMeL, the value of this model lies in its ability to build an integrated network of healthcare professionals, hospitals, pharmacies and industry, with each contributing its own expertise. The aim is not to replace specialist laboratories, but to extend their value into the community, making local prevention a more effective response to citizens’ healthcare needs,” explained Antonio Antico, President of SIPMeL.
“Current legislation allows initial tests to be performed in pharmacies. These tests support prevention and health monitoring and are carried out using equipment and procedures that meet safety and efficacy standards. We welcome the expansion of this service through the introduction of remotely reported tests, as is already the case with ECGs and Holter monitoring performed in pharmacies and interpreted remotely by specialists,” added Clara Mottinelli, National Treasurer of Federfarma.
“The challenge for citizen-centred healthcare is to provide increasingly accessible, reliable and integrated services. Ensuring that people do not have to navigate the healthcare system alone is a key part of innovation. This is the added value of the project: it connects pharmacies, hospital laboratories and healthcare professionals, providing citizens not simply with a test result, but with a clinically validated report that can help reduce repeat visits, duplication and fragmentation of care. Expanding the number of healthcare access points is not enough; we must build integrated pathways between professionals and services that support people throughout their care journey. This initiative also offers an opportunity for the healthcare system, with the potential to improve the appropriateness of care, continuity of services and equity of access,” concluded Maria Vitale, Head of Health Programmes at Cittadinanzattiva.
