Budget Goals
Generally, two separate sets of goals need consideration when developing the laboratory budget. Types of goals include:
- institutional goals, and the
- laboratory department goals.
They may be in sync, but sometimes they are not in total alignment. Examples of hospital initiatives might be to reduce costs and testing with the goal to make testing more targeted to specific patient care needs so hospital stays can be reduced. Department goals may align with these hospital goals but have operation and infrastructure goals such as buying a new analyzer and painting the department. The institution will want valid reasons why these specific goals are needed. Since the institution ultimately approves laboratory department budget goals, careful planning is needed to justify all expenses.
