Laboratory Information Systems
A laboratory information system, or LIS, is a software program that provides all the basic functionality needed for a clinical laboratory, whether that laboratory is hospital-based or a standalone commercial laboratory facility. Various components of the LIS will handle patient check-in, order entry, results entry, physician and patient demographics, specimen processing, and have some level of reporting ability.
Legacy laboratory information systems are typically homegrown, that is, they were developed within the organization 20 or 30 years ago, or were purchased ”off the shelf.” Homegrown systems and legacy systems often have problems with connectivity, scalability and flexibility, especially as technology changes within the laboratory and healthcare industry. Off-the-shelf products often force laboratories to modify their workflow to adapt to the LIS, rather than the other way around. Also, numerous LIS vendors have gone out of business or shifted their focus to other areas in the last two decades. Often legacy LISes utilize multiple databases, which create a great deal of difficulty with database interfaces and data synchronization.
Newer LISes are increasingly able to offer what laboratories need: modular-based systems with customizable functionality, scalability and a high level of adaptable connectivity for both institutional electronic medical records (EMRs) and physician access. Laboratories also require a LIS to to interface with the laboratory’s instrumentation, which allows patient results to be directly entered into the database and then into the EMR; Web-based order entry/result inquiry; and workload balancing. The LIS often has non-clinical functionality such as workflow monitoring and billing services.
In addition, these systems need to be customizable, be able to effectively and easily interface with both the institution’s electronic health record, the laboratory’s automated equipment, and provide Web-based access for physicians.
The environment for health information technology, specifically LISes, requires adherence to a number of national and international standards including CLIA, CCHIT, ANSI, HL7, HITSP, and LOINC.
BC Labs’ LOINC Venture Now Carries Pharma Info
CEO SUMMARY: In British Columbia, two commercial laboratory companies are intense competitors. Yet, beginning in 2002, they jointly offered a single Web browser-based system for lab test results reporting. LOINC was the tool which linked their individual lab data repositories to the PathN…
Pathologist Activities Evolve In VA’s “Paperless” Hospitals
“When a hospital or laboratory goes ‘paperless’, it’s no longer ‘business as usual’ for pathologists.” —Bruce Dunn, M.D. CEO SUMMARY: One outcome of the Veteran Administration’s (VA) ongoing effort to create a totally-integrated i…
Federal Government Leading March to Universal EMR
CEO SUMMARY: On April 26, 2004, President George W. Bush announced a new goal for the nation: an electronic medical record (EMR) for every patient within ten years. Last July, THE DARK REPORT predicted that the federal government would take the lead role in pushing healthcare to adopt a u…
Department of Defense and VA Prepare to Pool Health Data
IT’S ANOTHER IMPORTANT STEP on the road to a true “universal patient medical record.” Two government agencies are preparing to consolidate access to separate pools of healthcare data. Earlier this week, the Department of Defense (DoD) and the Department of Veterans Aff…
Free of IMPATH, Tamtron Ready For A New Future
CEO SUMMARY: Tamtron’s fortunes look much brighter with its acquisition by IMPAC Medical Systems, Inc., a healthcare information vendor with existing products for radiation oncology, medical oncology, and urology. IMPAC’s strategy is to create a “total solution” for oncology. That…
Web Lab Test Ordering Market Is Increasing
CEO SUMMARY: In recent years, the market for browser-based laboratory test ordering and results reporting systems has grown at a steady rate. Second and third generation products are more robust, offer more features, and are easier to install and operate. To date, smaller start-up compani…
More Firms Now Offer Web Lab Info Products
CEO SUMMARY: Since our last vendor directory in winter 2001, the number of companies selling browser-based systems for laboratory testing ordering and results reporting has doubled! That’s a sign that laboratories recognize the need to have an Internet strategy and are taking steps to d…
HHS Plans to Encourage National EMR System
CEO SUMMARY: Last week, the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) announced two major steps toward the universal electronic health record. One project involves the licensing of CAP’s SNOMED CT system to make it available to all healthcare providers in the United States. T…
GE Medical Systems To Buy Triple G Systems Group
HERE’S AN ACQUISITION with interesting ramifications for both clinical laboratories and anatomic pathology group practices. GE Medical Systems Information Technologies, (GEMSIT) a business division of General Electric Company, will acquire Triple G Systems…
Nine Key Trends Are Shaping Nation’s Healthcare Informatics
CEO SUMMARY: During the 1990s, hospital spending on information technology was devoted primarily to acquiring upgraded versions of software systems for clinical services such as laboratory, pharmacy, and radiology. That’s no longer true. As the following nine key trends in healthcare in…
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Volume XXXII, No. 6 – April 21, 2025
Now that a federal judge has vacated the FDA’s LDT rule, The Dark Report analyzes the judgement and notes the various steps the FDA could take in response. Also, lab testing at pharmacies is proving to be less successful than was once anticipated.
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