Aug 3, 2009 | Laboratory Hiring & Human Resources, Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory Pathology
ASCP and NCA create a single credentialing agency, effective October 23, 2009
Life is about to become simpler for Medical Technologists (MTs) and Clinical Laboratory Scientists (CLSs)! A single certification agency for medical laboratory professionals was announced last Friday, based on an agreement between the American Society for Clinical Pathology Board of Registry (BOR) and the National Credentialing Agency for Laboratory Personnel (NCA).
The new, consolidated credentialing entity will be called the ASCP Board of Certification (BOC). Effective on October 23, 2009, the ASCP BOC will serve as the certification body for medical laboratory professionals. The NCA will be dissolved as a corporation.
Finalization of this agreement was jointly announced by Kathleen Becan-McBride, Ed.D., MT(ASCP), Chair of the ASCP Board and Registry Board of Governors, and Susan Morris, CLS (NCA), NCA President. It was last July 21 when both groups first disclosed their agreement to form a new consolidated agency for certifying medical laboratory professionals. (See Dark Daily, “MT & CLS Laboratory Certification Agencies Agree to Unite”)
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Jul 31, 2009 | Digital Pathology, Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory Pathology
Aperio Technologies and Applied Spectral Imaging announce new products in July
Two new digital imaging products launched this month show that vendors are advancing the capabilities of digital imaging and digital pathology systems. Each company’s new product announcement touts the value of computer-aided diagnosis and computer pattern recognition for anatomic pathologists.
On July 9, Aperio Technologies, Inc., of Vista, California, launched its Digital IHC Solution for immunohistochemistry that features integrated image analysis for quantification of breast cancer. Aperio says that this is the only commercially available FDA-cleared system that allows pathologists to run quantitative IHC image analysis while reading slides on a computer monitor.
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Jul 30, 2009 | Laboratory News, News From Dark Daily
Lab Quality Confab 2009!!
September 29-30 2009 – Atlanta Hilton Hotel!
See Full Agenda Here
This exciting program, feature presentations by top-performing laboratories, hospitals, and pathology groups on their successes with Lean, Six Sigma, and Rapid Process Improvement techniques. Themes this year include breakthroughs in blending Lean with automation in the high-volume core chemistry/hematology laboratory, using middleware to drive real-time decision-making, innovation in the use of histology automation with Lean methods, along with more success stories of quality systems in blood banking, microbiology, and informatics. Plus a variety of presentations on coming changes in laboratory accreditation and licensure that will incorporate quality systems, including ISO:15189 Medical Laboratories.
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Jul 27, 2009 | Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory Pathology, Management & Operations
It’s a political slugfest which only reinforces the complexity of healthcare in this country
Get ready for the “Healthcare Reform Chart Wars,” brought to you courtesy of the two political parties. In the fight over the Obama Administration’s plan to reform healthcare, each side seems to be striving to offer up the most complex chart of how healthcare operates pre- and post-reform.
One chart (Republicans) skewers the complexity of the Democratic Party’s proposed reforms. The other chart (Democrats) demonstrates the convoluted intricacies of the existing American healthcare system. It appears that both Democrats and Republicans are engaged in this tussle with equal vigor and Dark Daily readers will enjoy the play-by-play of this unfolding farce.
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Jul 24, 2009 | Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory News, Laboratory Pathology, Management & Operations
AACC’s annual meeting still offers impressive array of scientific sessions and exhibits
Yesterday ended the 2009 Annual Meeting of the American Association of Clinical Chemistry (AACC) in Chicago, Illinois. Your Dark Daily team was there to ferret out anything new and interesting and to sniff out the latest trends in the business of laboratory testing.
As expected, this year’s event was considerably subdued. Attendance was clearly down, even though the exhibition hall featured more than 650 exhibitors—a number comparable to last year. But the exuberance of recent years was gone. For example, AACC did not make a public address announcement in the exhibit hall to announce the total number of attendees this year and thank everyone—at least not when your Dark Daily editor was in the exhibit hall. Speculation was that this year’s total attendance was down from the 20,000+ attendees in each of recent years. Estimates were that the attendance decline ranged from 20% to 30% fewer attendees.
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