Remembering COVID: How Northwest Laboratory Went From Accepting a Statewide Contract to Releasing 100,000 COVID-19 Test Results in Just Two Weeks

On May 11, 2023, the World Health Organization declared the global COVID-19 Public Health Emergency officially over. While many have embraced a return to normalcy, those in the healthcare industry, particularly in laboratory information and pathology lab management, recognize the importance of reflecting on the challenges and lessons learned to better prepare for future infectious disease threats.

Learn More: End of the Federal COVID-19 Public Health Emergency (PHE) Declaration

At LigoLab, supporting our lab partners during the pandemic was a top priority. We adapted quickly, providing innovative LIS laboratory information system/pathology software solutions to address rapidly evolving needs, enhance lab workflows, and ensure safety for patients and providers. 

Among the stories of resilience that emerged was the innovative partnership between Northwest Laboratory (now known as Avero Diagnostics) and the Florida Department of Health.

As we honor the dedication of healthcare and lab professionals who navigated these challenges, we invite you to revisit this direct-to-consumer lab testing case study originally published on June 12, 2020. Let’s take these lessons forward to build a stronger, more resilient healthcare system.

Details on the Northwest Laboratory/Florida Department of Health Partnership: How Both Organizations Leveraged Direct-to-Consumer Lab Testing Technology During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Last month, TestDirectly, an innovative new direct-to-consumer lab testing portal that connects patients, companies, collection centers, laboratories, and physicians for fast, safe, and easy testing, partnered with Northwest Laboratory and the Florida Department of Health to collect and test ALL of Florida’s 500,000 long term care (LTC) residents and staff for COVID-19.

So how did Northwest Laboratory position itself to earn such a contract, and what can your laboratory operation do to take advantage of the rising need for COVID-19 testing and help America get back to work?

LigoLab’s Suren Avunjian and Northwest Laboratory’s Jennifer Bull recently joined Robert Michel, host of the Dark Intelligence Group COVID-19 Stat Intelligence Briefing, to discuss the partnership that soon will reach 150,000 collected and processed tests. 

Here are some of the topics that were covered during the briefing:

• The Trump administration’s call for every state health department to quickly test all of its long-term care (LTC) residents and employees for the virus, and Florida’s objective to be the first state to complete the challenge, even though they have one of the highest senior populations in the country.
• How quickly the TestDirectly direct-to-consumer lab testing platform was up and running, ready to test a half-million residents and employees across 4,000 facilities and 67 counties.
• How Avunjian and his LigoLab team of talented engineers swiftly built and brought TestDirectly to market as a new pathology software solution in February of this year. 
• How LigoLab-TestDirectly integration goes beyond simply capturing requisitions (order forms) by providing an end-to-end platform covering the entire testing workflow, including self-registration, report delivery, and follow-up, with fast and accurate results delivered directly to patients.
• How Florida’s Department of Health coordinates the registration and collection of 10,000 specimen samples a day and how it monitors the test results.
• A breakdown of what happens after the requisitions and specimens arrive at Northwest Laboratory.
• The processing time and how quickly the patients receive their test results.
• What to look for when securing the supply chain and choosing the right technology/LIS software vendors.
• Lessons learned and where Northwest Laboratory and the state of Florida go from here.
• A summary of where else the TestDirectly platform has been deployed to protect the general public. 

Northwest Laboratory is a great example of a laboratory enterprise that’s leveraged partnerships and embraced innovation to position itself for long-term direct-to-consumer lab testing and business-to-business testing. 

Learn More: Say Goodbye to Your Testing Bottlenecks With TestDirectly‍

The TestDirectly Direct-to-Consumer Lab Testing Portal: How Does it Work?

TestDirectly was created by LigoLab to give consumers a direct link to laboratories for COVID-19 testing and a unified testing experience. The TestDirectly portal supports drive-through, on-site/dispatched, and at-home collection workflows. It’s a safe, fast, and easy way for patients, companies, collection centers, laboratories, and physicians to connect for direct-to-patient or business-to-business testing. 

Learn More: Highlighting the Versatility of the TestDirectly Direct-to-Consumer Lab Testing Portal‍

LigoLab: A Leading Provider of Lab Pathology Software 

Founded in 2006, LigoLab is widely known as a leading provider of innovative end-to-end healthcare LIS software and its partnership approach with laboratories, servicing nearly 300 facilities nationwide. 

As a future-ready pathology software company, LigoLab has developed a comprehensive all-in-one medical LIS and laboratory billing (lab revenue cycle management) solution, the LigoLab LIS & RCM Laboratory Informatics Platform™, that goes beyond core laboratory workflow management and provides all the supporting modules and engines a laboratory needs to thrive and grow, faster. LigoLab helps laboratories reduce errors while scaling their operations and revenues.

White Paper: The Connected Laboratory: Leveraging LIS & RCM to Grow Your Business

Learn More About Northwest Laboratory 

Northwest Pathology and Northwest Laboratory expertly cover all aspects of surgical pathology and laboratory medicine. The group offers a full histology laboratory and operates around the clock. Also included as part of the group are an immunohistochemistry laboratory with an extensive IHC menu, and a high-volume clinical laboratory with molecular and microbiology testing services. The group is based in Bellingham, affiliated with 11 hospitals (in Northwest Washington, on the Olympic Peninsula, and in Southeast Alaska), and has been in business for over 25-plus years. 

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Learn More About the Florida Department of Health

The Florida Department of Health, nationally accredited by the Public Health Accreditation Board, works to protect, promote, and improve the health of all people in Florida through integrated state, county and community efforts. For the latest actions taken by the state of Florida in response to COVID-19, follow FDOH on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. 

Learn More About the Dark Intelligence Group

The Dark Intelligence Group (TDIG) is a specialized intelligence service and information resource dedicated to the clinical laboratory and pathology industries. Founded in 1995, TDIG provides strategic insights, market analysis, and business intelligence to laboratory executives, pathologists, and other stakeholders in the diagnostics and laboratory medicine sectors.

TDIG is widely known for its publications, including:

• The Dark Report: A subscription-based newsletter offering industry trends, case studies, and expert analysis tailored to laboratory professionals and executives.
• Executive War College on Diagnostics, Clinical Laboratory, and Pathology Management: An annual conference organized by TDIG that gathers industry leaders to discuss innovations, challenges, and strategies shaping the future of laboratory medicine.

TDIG is a trusted source for laboratory professionals seeking thought leadership and a deeper understanding of industry dynamics.

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