Softwares Used By Diagnostic Labs

Technology in healthcare: How does software improve medical practice?

Big data, artificial intelligence and cloud computing, smartphones, the “internet of things” and wearable devices - all emerged during the last two decades. Things that were impossible to even imagine in the past are now changing the workflow in almost every industry, including the medical field

Technology is rapidly evolving and its applications are significantly contributing to healthcare development. With increased numbers of available medical software solutions, new possibilities emerged in the healthcare industry.

• Medical Diagnosis Software

Emerging medical software solutions in the healthcare industry are providing a large spectrum of previously unimaginable outcomes. They are helping healthcare professionals to gather data in order to establish data-driven decisions, while also helping them to interpret large amounts of data

Example – Face2gene, Diagnosaurus, Zebra AI1 ??????????

• Medical Visualization Software

New technologies related to 3D models, virtual reality, or simulations enabled doctors and surgeons to obtain further information that they previously could not do. In the field of visualization devices, one of the well-known companies is AccuVein. They produced a vein visualization device that helps healthcare professionals easily find patients’ veins for blood draws

• Software for Therapeutic Purposes

Software can have many applications in healthcare and numerous companies and start-ups work on developing new therapeutic tools for doctors

Example – RehaCom software

• Patient Monitoring Software

Deployment of technology in the healthcare industry resulted in an increasing number of mobile health technology or mHealth market. In 2019, the global mHealth market was estimated at 37 billion dollars. With it, wearable devices also emerged, making it possible for healthcare professionals and their patients to keep in touch and interact remotely.

Traditional data recording methods are often inadequate and too outdated to keep up with the demands of modern labs.?

A Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS) is the answer to the needs of modern laboratories. It is a software system that facilitates the management of samples, test results, and associated data to improve lab productivity and effectiveness.? A LIMS provides the standardization of workflows, procedures, and tests, and also ensures control over the processes in the lab.

Capabilities of LIMS:

• Sample management

LIMS sample management system is the core functionality of a LIMS. LIMS sample manager provides accurate records of each sample, from when it’s received in the lab and throughout its lifecycle.

• Instrument integration

LIMS Instrument Integration is a functionality that provides increased integration with lab instruments. Thanks to this solution, the LIMS can insert control files into a particular instrument and direct its functioning

• Procedure execution

The LIMS gives full control over procedure execution. It is in control of LIMS procedures, SOPs, and methods utilized in the lab.

• Data management

The growing volume of data created in labs has resulted in the incorporation of effective data management into the LIMS.

Working of LIMS

laboratory information system

A laboratory information system (LIS) is a healthcare software solution that processes, stores and manages patient data related to laboratory processes and testing. Providers and laboratory professionals use laboratory information systems to coordinate the workflow and quality control of inpatient and outpatient medical testing, including hematology, chemistry, immunology, microbiology, toxicology, public health, and other laboratory areas. Laboratory information systems track, store, and update clinical details about a patient during a provider visit and stores the information in its database for future reference.

Common LIS functions

Functions that a LIS has historically performed include, but are not limited to:

• patient management, including admission date, admitting physician, ordering department, specimen type, etc.
• patient data tracking
• decision support, including comparisons of lab orders with their respective codes
• standard test ordering and specimen tracking
• test ordering for point-of-care, molecular, and genetic testing
• quality assurance
• workload and management reporting
• analytical reporting
• workflow management
• billing
• third-party software integration

Differences between a LIS and a LIMS

There is often confusion regarding the difference between a LIS and a LIMS. While the two laboratory informatics components are related, their purposes diverged early in their existence. Up until recently, the LIS and LIMS have exhibited a few key differences:

1. An LIS has been designed primarily for processing and reporting data related to individual patients in a clinical setting. A LIMS has traditionally been designed to process and report data related to batches of samples from drug trials, water treatment facilities, and other entities that handle complex batches of data.

2. An LIS must satisfy the reporting and auditing needs of hospital accreditation agencies, HIPAA, and other clinical medical practitioners. A LIMS, however, needs to satisfy good manufacturing practice (GMP) and meet the reporting and audit needs of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and research scientists in many different industries.

3. An LIS is usually most competitive in patient-centric settings (dealing with "subjects" and "specimens") and clinical labs, whereas a LIMS is most competitive in group-centric settings (dealing with "batches" and "samples") that often deal with mostly anonymous research-specific laboratory data.