Feb 6, 2017 | Laboratory Hiring & Human Resources, Laboratory Pathology, Laboratory Testing
As chronic disease and aging populations strain the UK’s medical systems, staffing shortages at pathology laboratories contribute to lengthening delays of critical diagnostic services
In the United Kingdom (UK), pathologists and other physicians are going public with their concerns that a growing shortage of pathologists and medical laboratory scientists will soon contribute to delays in performing the lab tests needed to diagnose patients—particularly those with cancer—and identify which therapies will work best for them.
Thanks to vast improvements to both medical laboratory capabilities and treatment options, the cancer survival rate in the UK doubled over the past four decades. However, early diagnosis is a critical component to a successful outcome. As further strain is placed on medical laboratories and diagnostic providers, wait times continue to increase beyond the thresholds created by the UK’s National Health Service (NHS).
Worsening an already dire situation, a November 2016 report from Cancer Research UK, “Testing Times to Come? An Evaluation of Pathology Capacity Across the UK,” predicts a critical shortage in laboratory staffing within the next decade. Data on Provider-based Cancer Waiting Times for August 2016 from National Health Service England shows that 17.2% of patients with an urgent referral for suspected cancer fail to start treatment within two months of the referral. (more…)
Oct 17, 2016 | Laboratory Hiring & Human Resources, Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory News, Laboratory Operations, Laboratory Pathology, Laboratory Sales and Marketing, Laboratory Testing, Management & Operations
Providing physicians with the clinical context and knowledge for the best use of specialty clinical laboratory tests helps this highly successful lab sales professional establish win-win client relationships
In support of the many local clinical laboratories and hospital lab outreach programs across the United States that continue to regularly add new clients and take market share away from their national lab company competitors, The Dark Report organized the 2016 National Lab Sales Excellence Award.
The award winners were announced at this year’s Executive War College in New Orleans on April 26–27. Reporting on the lab industry’s top sales producers serves two worthy goals. First, it brings recognition to the accomplishments of these lab sales professionals. Second, it helps medical laboratory administrators and pathologists at other labs and hospital outreach programs learn more about what it takes to use lab sales reps to win new clients.
What follows is a profile of the 2nd winner of the 2016 National Lab Sales Excellence Award. Dark Daily will publish profiles for each of the five laboratory sales professionals who were recognized with this unique national sales award. (more…)
Oct 3, 2016 | Digital Pathology, Instruments & Equipment, Laboratory Instruments & Laboratory Equipment, Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory News, Laboratory Operations, Laboratory Pathology, Laboratory Testing
Clinical laboratories and pathology groups may eventually use these devices to detect minute quantities of biomarkers
IBM has regularly declared its interest in being a player in the field of healthcare big data. Now comes news that the information technology giant wants to develop lab-on-a-chip (LOC) technology that can handle different types of clinical laboratory and anatomic pathology tests.
As reported in Nature Nanotechnology, researchers at IBM are working with a team from Mount Sinai Health System. Together, they created a lab-on-a-chip device capable of separating biomolecules as small as 20nm in length from urine, saliva, or blood samples without the need for specialized clinical laboratory equipment. The technology is called nanoDLD.
Current testing of this lab-on-a-chip focuses on exosomes and cancer research. However, researchers note that the asymmetric pillar array on their silicon chip can also separate DNA, viruses, and protein complexes. With further development, they hope to separate particles down to 10nm in length. This would allow isolation of specific proteins. (more…)
Sep 2, 2016 | Laboratory Instruments & Laboratory Equipment, Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory News, Laboratory Operations, Laboratory Pathology, Laboratory Testing, Management & Operations
Companies are exploring creative ways to use genetic testing and counseling to improve the health of their employees demonstrating increasing trust in genetic science
Genetic testing has been a product offered by distributors of Amway Global of Ada, Mich., since 2009. Now Amway is launching a program to provide certain genetic tests to its employees working within the United States.
More than 5,000 Amway employees can take advantage of this genetic testing as an innovative benefit. Through its partnership with Interleukin Genetics (NYSE Amex: ILI), a genetics-based health company headquartered in Waltham, Mass., Amway seeks to empower its personnel to assess their genetic risk for chronic inflammation, which can lead to disease. (more…)
Jul 11, 2016 | Coding, Billing, and Collections, Compliance, Legal, and Malpractice, Laboratory Instruments & Laboratory Equipment, Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory Pathology, Laboratory Testing
The National Institute of Health’s ClinVar public database of genetic variation is demonstrating good accuracy, and a handful of clinical labs are learning to share and review this relatively small genetic database
In the analysis of genomic variants, data sharing is proving to be an important tool for researchers, scientists, pathologists, and clinical laboratory scientists.
Accessible databases like ClinVar, which was launched by the National Institute of Health (NIH) in 2013, have emerged to aggregate genetic sequencing with acceptable results. ClinVar exists to meet the needs of the medical genetics community. It collaborates with organizations to make pertinent genetic information available.
ClinVar is an archive of compiled data relating to genotype and phenotype variations among humans. Through this database, individuals can present and peruse submissions regarding variants found in patient samples.
ClinVar is averaging about 6,000 submissions per month by both commercial laboratory companies and reference labs. Major contributors to the database include: (more…)
