Management and Follow-Up of Critical Diagnostic Results in Medical Laboratories, Radiology, and Computed Tomography: The Roles of Nursing, Pharmacy Technology, and Medical Records—a Narrative Review

Background: Critical diagnostic results require a reliable response across laboratory, imaging, nursing, pharmacy, medical records, and management services. Communication failures can persist even when results are available electronically. Objective: To synthesize evidence on communication, documentation, and multidisciplinary follow-up of critical and other actionable diagnostic results, and propose recommendations for local implementation. Methods: This targeted narrative review examined 80 purposively selected journal publications identified through PubMed-indexed records in Europe PMC and supplementary PubMed, PubMed Central, and publisher checks. The search was conducted on 7 October 2026. Bibliographic identities were verified; abstracts and accessible full texts informed the synthesis. Evidence was distinguished by study design, clinical setting, and measured endpoint. No formal risk-of-bias assessment or meta-analysis was performed. Findings: Notification, acknowledgment, clinical assessment, and completed action are separate outcomes. Electronic interventions sometimes improved communication or time to action, but effects on follow-up completion and patient outcomes were inconsistent. Unclear ownership, discharge transitions, coverage gaps, and fragmented documentation recurred across settings. Pharmacy-supported culture follow-up and structured handoffs provide relevant evidence, although findings cannot be transferred indiscriminately between professional roles or clinical pathways. A proposed implementation framework links urgency classification, named responsibility, escalation, tracking, and documented closure. Recommendations identify responsible functions, supporting evidence, and candidate monitoring measures. Conclusion: Reliable result management requires an accountable clinical service and a traceable response extending beyond message delivery. Institutions should evaluate completed follow-up and unintended workload alongside notification speed, adapt responsibilities to local authorization, and test workflows before wider implementation.