DARK Daily Laboratory and Pathology News
DARK Daily is an e-briefing service providing up-to-the minute news of relevance for anyone working in diagnostic medicine, from clinical laboratories and pathology groups to lab industry suppliers and diagnostic technology companies. DARK Daily is part of The Dark Intelligence Group, Inc. and is dedicated to bringing useful business and management intelligence to laboratory managers, pathologists and diagnostic executives. Our recognized expertise in the strategic direction of laboratory medicine and the management of laboratories is available through DARK Daily, The Dark Report, the Executive War College on Laboratory and Pathology Management, Lab Quality Confab, free White Papers, free lab product reviews, and strategic consulting services.Latest E-Briefings
Federal Government Agrees to Open Access to Medicare Data about Individual Doctors
Experts predict employers will use this data to create “report cards” on individual physicians
In a big step forward for public access to data about provider outcomes, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) will make its enormous Medicare claims database more broadly available to the public. Both the press and the public will be able to search for information about individual physicians. It is likely that information about pathologists will be searchable in this manner.
Specifically, Medicare will relax its restrictions on the release of information about individual doctors who participate in Medicare. This development was reported recently by The Wall Street Journal, which played a role in getting HHS to make physician data available to the public.
“This is a giant step forward in making our health care system more transparent,” stated Marilyn Tavenner, Medicare’s Acting Administrator. continue reading
Changing Role for Pathology and Clinical Laboratory Testing Discussed at Personalized Medicine World Conference in Silicon Valley
Genetic testing and molecular diagnostics will be essential to wider adoption of personalized medicine by nation’s physicians
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CALIFORNIA—Here in Silicon Valley at the Personalized Medicine World Conference (PMWC), the role of clinical laboratory testing and anatomic pathology services was consistently recognized as essential in advancing this important healthcare trend. Yet, at the same time, few pathologists or clinical laboratory executives were in attendance.
Your Dark Daily Editor, Robert L. Michel, was here at PMWC this week to speak on the topic of how medical laboratories and pathology groups will be one primary—and important—channel for helping physicians adopt and use personalized medicine in their medical practice. In simplest terms, it is typically pathologists and clinical laboratory professionals who educate doctors about the availability of new clinical lab tests and how to use them in their practice of medicine.
In that role, the medical laboratory provides physicians with information on when to order these new assays, how to interpret the lab test results, and how to use those results to determine the most appropriate therapy. Yet, here at the Personalized Medicine World Conference, developers at biotech companies seem to be overlooking this long-established fact in the clinical care marketplace. continue reading
Clinical Pathology Labs Take Note! Six ACO Early Adopters Seek Accreditation from NCQA
Clinical laboratory managers and pathologists can expect ACOs to impact competition for laboratory services
Six accountable care organizations (ACO) stepped up and applied for accreditation through the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA). In many ways, this marks the beginning of the ACO era in American healthcare.
These six intrepid first-mover organizations will be familiar to most pathologists and clinical laboratory managers. In a recent press release, the NCQA announced their names. They are:
- Billings Clinic, Billings, Montana
- Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Crystal Run Healthcare, Middletown, New York
- Essentia Health, Duluth, Minnesota
- HealthPartners, Minneapolis, Minnesota
- Kelsey-Seybold Clinic, Houston, Texas.
Aptamer-Based Blood Protein Detection Technology May Soon Be Used By Medical Laboratories in Tests for Cancer, Diabetes, and Other Diseases
Researchers believe that clinical laboratory assays that use aptamers would have multiple advantages when compared to diagnostic tests utilizing anti-bodies
New diagnostic technology has been developed that has the potential to accurately detect such diseases as cancer and diabetes, even when the patient is pre-symptomatic. Not only would medical laboratory tests using this technology be low cost and portable, but some experts think that diagnostic assays using this technology could make it through the regulatory process and be cleared for clinical use in just five years or less.
This highly-sensitive diagnostic technology is able to detect specific proteins in human blood. It was developed by a research team at the University of Toledo in Ohio. Last fall, they published their findings in the Optical Society’s (OSA) open-access journal, Biomedical Optics Express.
New In Vivo Implant Device Monitors Tumor Growth Remotely
Clinical laboratory directors and pathologists will see threats and opportunities as microelectronic devices offer new diagnostic and therapeutic modalities
In vivo clinical diagnostic testing just took a giant step forward. A team of medical engineers at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) have developed a prototype microchip sensor implant designed to continuously monitor tumors remotely.
Internal Detection Device Allows For Remote Monitoring In Real Time
The device, called IntelliTuM (Intelligent Implant for Tumor Monitoring), detects the level of dissolved oxygen in the fluid near the tumor, according to an online article at Technology Review, published by Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
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Since its founding in 1995, The Dark Report has been the laboratory industry’s most reliable source for useful business intelligence and innovations in the management of clinical laboratories and pathology group practices. Widely-read and much discussed, The Dark Report is respected as a source of knowledge and information that allows lab administrators, pathologists, and industry executives to be first to learn about the latest facts and trends that affect medical laboratories of all kinds.
Professional Services
Strategic Consulting
With a demonstrated track record of success, Robert Michel and the team at The Dark Intelligence Group, Inc. deliver strategic insight and market analysis that directly leads to increased revenues, improved profitability, and operational excellence. Having continuously worked with and visited laboratories, pathology groups, and lab industry vendors for more than 12 years, Robert Michel brings a unique set of skills and experience to any strategic challenge or opportunity.
Meeting Facilitation
Energize your next public meeting, strategic retreat, or corporate event. Widely-recognized and often asked back for a second and third year, Robert Michel has a recognized ability to help audiences get more from the speakers and advance their knowledge and understanding about key trends and management innovations. One- and two-day management retreats are a specialty.
Public Presentations
For a dynamic and knowledgeable public speaker to turbo-charge your next meeting, contact The Dark Intelligence Group. When it comes to management of clinical laboratories and pathology group practices, Robert Michel and his colleagues are consistently ranked among the industry’s keenest minds.
