Oct 20, 2010 | Laboratory News, Laboratory Pathology
Company will develop solutions for new reimbursement models, evidence-based care, and supporting health service delivery needs
Earlier this fall, IBM Corporation (NYSE: IBM) announced plans to invest $100 million specifically to advance IBM capabilities in three key areas of healthcare informatics. That seemed like a big deal that might affect clinical pathology, since IBM is one of the information technology (IT) giants in the United States.
However, Dark Daily editors made a surprising discovery as they researched the news of IBM’s new $100 million healthcare IT investment initiative. IBM has a habit of making $100 million investments in recent years! It has learned that dropping a press release that announces a $100 million IT investment initiative generates plenty of press coverage.
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Oct 13, 2010 | Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory News, Laboratory Pathology
Surgical pathologists could gain new tool to diagnose many types of cancers
It might soon be possible to determine the HER2 status of breast cancer patients from blood samples rather than tissue biopsies. If this new technology proves feasible, it would give surgical pathologists and medical laboratories a different, and possibly less complex, methodology to use when assessing a case of breast cancer.
In its report about the study, Medscape Medical News, wrote that “HER2 status derived from circulating tumor cells (CTCs) from breast cancer patients was generally concordant with that derived from tumor tissue” and that “CTCs could prove to be an alternative to biopsies for assessing tumor tissue for biomarker status.”
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Oct 4, 2010 | Laboratory News, Laboratory Pathology, Laboratory Testing
Much medical laboratory testing done in support of cholesterol and cardiovascular management
In many cases, a prescription for a therapeutic drug is the result of a medical laboratory test. Thus, pathologists and clinical laboratory managers might be interested in knowing which drugs topped the 2010 IMS Health Incorporated list for most-prescribed pharmaceuticals.
Topping the list is the combo drug hydrocodone acetaminophen, which is primarily taken to control pain. This blended opiate/analgesic is marketed under various brand names, such as Vicodin, depending on the manufacturer and quantity of the individual drugs.
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Sep 23, 2010 | Laboratory Pathology, News From Dark Daily
Some U.S. laboratories already ramping up their LIS resources to meet demand for LIS-to-EMR interfaces
Clinical laboratory managers and pathology groups need to prepare for what is expected to be a tsunami of requests by physicians who want their newly-implemented electronic medical record (EMR) systems to be interfaced with their laboratory’s LIS. This approaching tsunami is a consequence of the billions in federal incentive payments designed to encourage doctors to adopt EMRs.
It means lab managers and pathologists must actively prepare their medical laboratory to step up and support the “meaningful use” needs of client physicians. As mandated by the HITECH Act, healthcare providers are required to engage in “meaningful” patient health information (PHI) exchanges. Because more than 400,000 physicians will implement electronic medical records (EMR) in the next 60 months, labs should not delay in establishing a strategy.
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Sep 17, 2010 | Laboratory News, Laboratory Pathology
Clinical laboratories and pathology groups are likely to need LIS upgrades
Clinical laboratories and anatomic pathology groups may soon face the need to upgrade or switch their laboratory information system (LIS) to a version that is HIPAA 5010 and ICD-10 capable. This is likely to be an overlooked consequence of the mass adoption of electronic medical record (EMR) systems by physicians across the country.
Between 2011 and 2015, it is predicted that 350,000 or more physicians will implement an EMR and use it in their daily practice. This is happening because of the federal incentives provided by the HITECH Act. The scale of the coming tidal wave of EMR adoption is revealed in a recent Frost & Sullivan report .
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