Apr 7, 2017 | Laboratory Instruments & Laboratory Equipment, Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory News, Laboratory Operations, Laboratory Pathology, Laboratory Testing, Management & Operations
Medical laboratories now taking the steps to deliver patient-centric lab testing services report solid successes in improving patient/physician satisfaction, increasing lab revenue, and gaining more network access
Evidence is accumulating that “patient-centric” medical laboratory testing services are poised to become one of the most important new paradigms to reshape the house of pathology and clinical laboratory medicine in decades. Better yet, patient-centric lab services will earn more revenue for those labs that move fastest to incorporate these capabilities into their service mix.
“The paradigm of patient-center lab testing services couldn’t come at a better time for the clinical laboratory industry. Most labs are reeling from what is now nearly a full decade of successive and painful reductions in lab test prices and lab budgets,” observed Robert Michel, Editor-in-Chief of The Dark Report, which is Dark Daily’s sister publication. “After years of aggressive cost-cutting, most labs are down to the bare essentials and staff is overworked. That is why there is an urgent need for an operational and clinical strategy that will earn more payment from payers. (more…)
Nov 14, 2016 | Compliance, Legal, and Malpractice, Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory News, Laboratory Operations, Laboratory Pathology, Management & Operations
All hospital laboratories will be part of these programs, and it is an opportunity for medical laboratory professionals to deliver considerable value, as hospitals take steps to improve the utilization of antibiotics
Clinical laboratories and pharmacies in the nation’s hospitals and health systems have a huge opportunity to deliver substantial value in patient care. That’s because, at the start of 2017, hospitals must put effective antimicrobial stewardship programs (ASPs) in place to meet the new accreditation requirements of Medicare and The Joint Commission.
Overuse and inappropriate use of antibiotics is now considered one of the biggest problems in medicine. “Antibiotics are lifesaving drugs, and if we continue down the road of inappropriate use we’ll lose the most powerful tool we have to fight life-threatening infections,” stated Tom Frieden, MD, MPH, Director, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Administrator, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), in a press release issued by the CDC last May. “Losing these antibiotics would undermine our ability to treat patients [who have] deadly infections, cancer, provide organ transplants, and save victims of burns and trauma.”
Much publicity is devoted to the rise of the increase of antibiotic-resistant organisms. In recognition of this problem, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), and The Joint Commission (TJC), took steps to add antimicrobial stewardship program requirements to their respective hospital accreditation programs. (more…)
Nov 7, 2016 | Compliance, Legal, and Malpractice, Digital Pathology, Instruments & Equipment, Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory News, Laboratory Operations, Laboratory Pathology, Laboratory Testing, Management & Operations
What causes diagnostic errors? This was the question asked by researchers at the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center (EDVA) in Houston. It is also a question of great interest to pathologists and clinical laboratory scientists, since the failure of physicians to properly order and interpret medical laboratory tests can be a cause of diagnostic errors.
Researchers were investigating how access to patient data embedded in hospital electronic health records (EHRs) affects patient safety. The results of their study—and the challenges they encountered accessing the data during the research—led to some startling conclusions about accessibility to patient data, and the nature of the data itself.
The researchers published their findings online in “Challenges in Patient Safety Improvement Research in the Era of Electronic Health Records.” Their paper examines ways in which EHRs can assist healthcare professionals in improving patient safety and guaranteeing proper follow-up care. (more…)
May 18, 2016 | Instruments & Equipment, Laboratory Instruments & Laboratory Equipment, Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory Operations, Laboratory Pathology, Laboratory Testing
As technologies used by fitness wearables mature, medical laboratories will want to develop ways to access and process the flood of data that will become available
Point-of-care testing and remote patient monitoring are two technologies that could be disruptive to the clinical laboratory industry, particularly if use of these devices was to reduce the volume of patient specimen that are referred to the nation’s large, centralized medical laboratories.
This is one reason why savvy pathologists watch the stream of new products designed to allow athletes and consumers to monitor their fitness and other characteristics of good health. These devices are at the very front of the curve for remote monitoring of an athlete’s performance during training and competition, as well as enabling consumers to track different parameters of their health. What’s a toy for today’s sophisticated consumers could later be easily adopted for clinical diagnostic purposes.
One great example of how swiftly technology advances are changing remote diagnostic monitoring involves heart rate monitors. It wasn’t long ago that even basic heart rate monitors were a pricey purchase for consumers. But thanks to strong interest in gathering healthcare data, costs are dropping. (more…)
Apr 25, 2016 | Compliance, Legal, and Malpractice, Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory News, Laboratory Operations, Laboratory Pathology, Laboratory Sales and Marketing
Legislation has been introduced that, if passed, would ensure health consumers have the opportunity to see and correct information held by data brokers
When it comes to patient privacy, pathologists and clinical laboratory managers may be spending more time addressing a growing issue with the patient data their labs create and store. Third-party data brokers want to position themselves to collect healthcare data at the source so can they de-identify it and sell it to interested parties.
Data brokers are commercial entities that collect, assemble, and/or maintain personal information about individuals. They also sell or provide third-party access to the information, explained the Congressional Research Service, a Legislative Branch Agency that provides policy and legal analysis to both House and Senate members and committees of the U.S. Congress, regardless of party affiliation.
Pharmaceutical companies, medical device manufacturers, and other businesses can purchase said data from various types of data brokers, such as information, analysis, and technology companies. The purchased data then can go on to guide industry investments or launch drug marketing campaigns. (more…)
