Laboratory Management
Laboratory management in today’s clinical lab industry is changing rapidly and facing entirely new challenges. One problem is the lack of upcoming younger lab managers, as the retirements of baby boomer pathologists, medical technologists and lab scientists are in the near future. These individuals make up the largest proportion of supervisors, managers, and lab administrators working in labs today.
As they retire, every clinical lab and pathology group needs to have the next generation of leaders ready to step up and assume responsibilities. But, across the lab industry, there are limited opportunities for every lab’s brightest up-and-comers to get the regular management development opportunities that are common among Fortune 500 companies. The Dark Intelligence Group has called for the establishment of a mentoring program to help overcome this problem.
At the same time, downward pressure on reimbursements and mounting competition have created an environment that requires much more effort for a medical lab to grow and thrive.
Legislation, including the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act (HITECH) of 2009 and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) of 2010, have placed significant demands on medical laboratories and healthcare providers to improve internal efficiency even while offering more services for less money. This pressure to “do more with less” is further compounded by the need to deliver increasingly personalized client service to retain and win clients.
With the era of fee-for-service medicine coming to a close, every clinical laboratory and anatomic pathology organization needs a strategy for getting paid, as new reimbursement models that support patient-centric care will make up a larger portion of lab revenues.
The challenge for every clinical laboratory manager is to understand how to evolve from a business model that is accession-centric or volume-centric to one that is patient-centric.
Many clinical laboratories today are developing data repositories to logically link all transactional and other information about a patient. These repositories allow physicians to see all relevant information, identify trends, and provide better care as a result, enabling labs to provide greater value to their customers, patients and payers, thus creating more value and becoming more patient-centric.
SmithKline, AmeriPath, Quest, Tenet
TENET AND MEDPARTNERS CONTINUE TIGHTENING THEIR SO. CALIF. ALLIANCE Remember THE DARK REPORT’S prediction that …
National Labs Show Improved Finances For First Quarter, 1998
FIRST QUARTER FINANCIAL performance of the three national laboratories indicates that they may finally be past the worst of the managed care storm. On April 14, Quest Diagnostics Incorporated became the first of the three blood brothers to release earnings. First quarter revenues d…
Bio-Reference Labs Buys New York-Based Medilabs
CEO SUMMARY: Here is an independent commercial laboratory that shows sustained growth while it maintains profitable operations. One key strategy is the selective acquisition of laboratory business in small, profitable chunks. The sales price paid for Medilabs demonstrates how much decline…
Tennessee Lab Network In Start-Up Preparations
CEO SUMMARY: Planning for the Middle Tennessee Healthcare Network’s proposed regional laboratory network took longer than expected, but not without good cause. Organizers of this laboratory network did their homework and created a solid business plan. Approval by CEOs from the participa…
MTHN Provides Lessons In Creating Lab Networks
CEO SUMMARY: Every regional laboratory network in the United States is unique. Regional variations in healthcare and business objectives are different in every case. But the management problems of network structure, governance, marketing and finance are always the same. Here are some usef…
Big Loss At MedPartners, Aetna Buys NY Life Unit
CEO SUMMARY: Consolidation of the healthcare industry may be continuing, but the process is not profitable for some of the country’s largest corporations. Clinical laboratories will continue to be impacted by the financial fortunes of these major players. Here’s why the troubles at Me…
1998’s Movers & Shakers Go Beyond The Ordinary
CEO SUMMARY: As the laboratory industry undergoes fundamental change, new business and management models must be developed. Our list of “Movers and Shakers” for 1998 highlights individuals now leading the science of laboratory management toward these new paradigms. FIND…
Kaiser Reports Huge Loss, Many HMOs Losing Money
CEO SUMMARY: Poor financial performance of many managed care plans is bad news for clinical laboratories. Those insurance plans losing money find it tough to increase reimbursement for laboratory tests. Financial struggles of the health insurance industry should be closely watched for its…
Catholic Healthcare West, Tenet Form Joint Venture
CEO SUMMARY: This consolidation initiative brings together the resources of both hospital operators. The objective of the partnership is to more efficiently align services in California’s San Joaquin Valley. This is a proactive step that anticipates further reductions in reimbursement a…
30-Hospital Lab Contract Inked By Tenet & SBCL
CEO SUMMARY: By signing this deal with Tenet, SmithKline Beecham Clinical Laboratories captured one of the largest hospital laboratory management contracts ever offered. The project’s size, scale and far-flung geography make this a daunting challenge, particularly given California’s c…
CURRENT ISSUE
Volume XXXII, No. 12 – August 25, 2025
In an exclusive interview, a laboratory industry M&A specialist discusses what’s driving lab outreach sales to national lab companies. Also, The Dark Report analyzes ways in which pathology and clinical labs can profitably partner with pharmaceutical companies.
See the full table of contentsHow Much Laboratory Business Intelligence Have You Missed?
Lab leaders rely on THE DARK REPORT for actionable intelligence on important developments in the business of laboratory testing. Maximize the money you make-and the money you keep! Best of all, it is released every three weeks!
Sign up for TDR Insider
Join the Dark Intelligence Group FREE and get TDR Insider FREE!
Never miss a single update on the issues that matter to you and your business.