News, Analysis, Trends, Management Innovations for
Clinical Laboratories and Pathology Groups

Hosted by Robert Michel

News, Analysis, Trends, Management Innovations for
Clinical Laboratories and Pathology Groups

Hosted by Robert Michel
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Does Your Clinical Laboratory or Pathology Group Have the Effective Leaders It Needs During These Challenging Times?

On May 5-6 in New Orleans, leadership will be a major theme when “the U.S. Army War College meets the Executive War College on Lab and Pathology Management” in a special workshop for executive leaders of labs and pathology groups

Some would argue that leadership in medical laboratories today has something in common with the opening line of a famous 19th century novel.

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times,” is the first sentence in “A Tale of Two Cities,” Charles Dickens’ famous novel. Many pathologists and clinical laboratory managers would agree that this sentence accurately describes today’s marketplace for medical laboratory testing. (more…)

At Lab Quality Confab in New Orleans this Week, Speakers Addressed Major Issues Faced by Medical Laboratories, including the Need for Labs to Deliver More Diagnostic Value to Physicians

‘Best of class’ clinical laboratories and anatomic pathology groups shared case studies in effective cost-cutting and steps they are taking to add value to lab testing services

NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA—Here in the Crescent City this week, almost 300 clinical laboratory managers and pathologists gathered to learn and master the latest innovations in managing cost in medical laboratories, while introducing high-value medical laboratory testing services that help physicians deliver better outcomes for their patients.

This is not an easy tightrope to walk for clinical lab leaders. Across the United States, most medical labs and pathology groups are dealing with shrinking budgets and falling prices for lab testing. This means less money to perform the same or growing volume of patient specimens arriving daily at their labs. (more…)

Clinical Laboratory Executives and Pathologists Gathered in New Orleans This Week to Learn New Financial Strategies to Cope with Shrinking Lab Test Prices

Medical laboratories and anatomic pathology groups are scrambling to respond as healthcare evolves into new models of integrated clinical care and payers seek to reduce reimbursement for clinical lab tests

NEW ORLEANS, LA.—There was more bad news than good news for the 800 clinical laboratory professionals and pathologists who assembled this week in “The Big Easy” to discuss and debate the serious financial and clinical challenges now weighing down the entire profession of laboratory medicine in the United States.

Probably the most unwelcome news delivered to attendees at the 19th Annual Executive War College on Laboratory and Pathology Management, was the contents of the new law titled the “Protecting Access to Medicare Act of 2014” (PAMA). This was the legislation passed by Congress to patch the Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) formula for one more year. It was signed into law by President Obama on April 1, 2014. (more…)

Clinical Pathology Laboratory Leaders Reported Big Savings from Cost-Cutting Programs during Last Week’s Lab Quality Confab

A sold-out audience gathered at the seventh annual Lab Quality Confab and heard speakers from the nation’s most innovative medical laboratories share case studies about success in cutting lab expenses and improving quality

DATELINE: NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA—At a time when medical laboratories in the United States are experiencing significant financial challenges, there was plenty of guarded optimism among the clinical laboratory managers and pathologists who gathered in this famous city last week for the seventh annual Lab Quality Confab.

One reason for this optimism is that speakers and attendees at this sold-out meeting are the nation’s leading experts in the use of Lean, Six Sigma, and process improvement methods in medical laboratories and pathology groups. They know how to cut lab costs while maintaining quality and boosting the productivity of the lab’s staff and automated systems. (more…)

When Cost-Cutting in the Clinical Pathology Laboratory Collides with Effective QA/QC: How Savvy Labs Sustain the Accuracy and Quality of their Lab Test Results

As medical laboratories struggle to reduce costs and squeeze their budgets, it is essential that the lab’s quality assurance/quality control program is run properly to protect and enhance the analytical integrity of lab test results

When does budget cutting in a clinical laboratory begin to undermine the accuracy and analytical integrity of the medical laboratory test results produced by the laboratory?

This question is apparently a subject of much discussion within some lab organizations where aggressive cost reduction programs are shrinking lab staff and reducing funds spent on controls and similar QA/QC resources.

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