Which of the following is NOT a stated benefit of multiplex PCR with pharmacist-driven reporting?

• A. Reduced time to antibiotic change
• B. Decreased rate of culture positivity
• C. Higher selection of optimal therapy
• D. Reduced use of vancomycin for CoNS contaminants

Answer: (B)

Rapid multiplex PCR with pharmacist-driven reporting speeds up and improves antibiotic decisions by delivering fast, pathogen-specific results with pharmacist interpretation and recommendations. Because results come in hours rather than days and are interpreted in the context of stewardship goals, clinicians can change therapy sooner to target the identifiable organism, rather than waiting for culture results alone.

This approach helps clinicians select the most appropriate therapy more often, since you’ve got concrete organism information and, when available, resistance markers. The pharmacist-driven reporting element further enhances this by translating the lab result into actionable guidance—suggesting de-escalation when a narrow-spectrum agent is sufficient and highlighting when escalation or alternative therapy is needed based on the detected organism.

Additionally, rapid reporting aids in avoiding unnecessary broad-spectrum use for contaminants. For common contaminants such as CoNS, timely information that the finding likely reflects contamination supports reducing vancomycin exposure when the clinical picture and the rapid result concordant with a contaminant scenario.

Decreased rate of culture positivity is not a stated benefit. The multiplex PCR provides rapid detection and, when used with culture, complements rather than aims to reduce culture positivity. It may even identify pathogens when cultures are negative or after antibiotics have been started, but lowering culture positivity itself is not a claimed benefit of this approach.