[The expectations for the third generation clinical laboratories in Japan].

The author expressed his hopes and expectations for third generation clinical laboratory schemes or systems in Japan. The history of development of the clinical laboratory in Japan can be classified three generations after the Second World War, the first generation (1945-1975), the second generation (1970-2005) and the third generation (2001-). The third generation clinical laboratory can be called "the clinical laboratory for the 21st century". The author advised some suggestions for the clinical laboratory for the 21st century. The main advice of the author is as follows: 1) The necessity of professional physicians of clinical laboratory medicine in hospitals. 2) The necessity of standardization and holding nationwide common reference values of main clinical laboratory tests. 3) The realization of a network of high-grade laboratory tests between all clinical laboratory divisions of the national university hospitals.