Kaufman Hall Study Concludes Operating Margins are Declining in Nation’s Hospitals and Health Systems during 2022, a finding with implications for Hospital Laboratories

Clinical laboratory managers and pathology group leaders may want to pay closer attention to shrinking hospital margins and whether this may put pressure on hospital laboratory budgets Financial performance of the nation’s hospitals and health systems continues to disappoint hospital leaders. For the fourth consecutive month this year, hospital operating margins have remained in the red. This will, of course, affect the clinical laboratories and pathology departments at these institutions. A...

Forbes Senior Contributor Covers Reasons for Growing Staff Shortages at Medical Laboratories and Possible Solutions

Factors contributing to shortage of med techs and other lab scientists include limited training programs in clinical laboratory science, pay disparity, and staff retention, notes infectious disease specialist Judy Stone, MD Staff shortages are a growing challenge for medical laboratories, and now the problem has grabbed the attention of a major media outlet. In a story she penned for Forbes, titled, “We’re Facing a Critical Shortage of Medical Laboratory Professionals,” senior contributor and...

Four Thousand New Zealand Medical Laboratory Scientists and Technicians Threatened to Strike over Low Pay and Poor Working Conditions

Last-minute court injunction stopped a mass walkout, but allied health workers continue to push country’s District Health Boards for improvements In New Zealand, the unprecedented surge in PCR COVID-19 testing due to the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant appears to have pushed the country’s 10,000 healthcare workers—including 4,000 medical laboratory scientists and technicians—to the breaking point. On March 3, just 24 hours before the first of two walkouts was scheduled to begin, New Zealand’s...

Clinical Laboratories Suffer During the ‘Great Resignation’

Labs need to rethink recruitment tactics to successfully hire younger workers We’ve heard a lot anecdotally about the “Great Resignation”—a labor phenomenon rooted in the pandemic that has led to an abnormally large amount of workers, including lab professionals, quitting their jobs. The trend has hit healthcare hard, as evidenced by the latest numbers from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. From August 2021 through December 2021, the healthcare and social assistance workforce saw nearly 2.8...

Sonic Healthcare Acquires Propath, while PathGroup Buys Pathology Consultants in More Signs of a Consolidating Market

An estimated 80 pathologists will now work for larger pathology superlabs as part of the deals, bringing stiffer competition to independent anatomic pathology groups This story comes from the desk of The Dark Report. If you’re not a subscriber, sign up for a free trial and read exclusive insider content for laboratory directors and pathologists. Consolidation among private practice anatomic pathology groups continues with news that two large regional pathology groups decided to sell to larger...

Medscape Report on Physician Salaries in 2020 Shows Pathologists at Middle in Pay, but Near Top in Job Satisfaction

Though pathology salaries rank 16th among 29 medical specialties, it is in the top 10 among specialties that attract women and respondents say that comes with a lot of paperwork Despite “hardships” brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, 18,000 physicians in more than 29 medical specialties who participated in Medscape’s 2021 Physician Compensation Report said that, overall, their 2020 income was similar to prior years. Pathologists reported earnings in 2020 of $316,000, $28,000 below the average...
;