LIS System Enhancements and Features Showcased at User Groups

If you’re a LigoLab Informatics Platform user, you already know it's a dynamic LIS laboratory information system constantly evolving with new features and enhancements added daily. This ensures that LigoLab users NEVER outgrow their laboratory information system (LIS system).

At LigoLab, our philosophy has remained unchanged since day one. 

We’ve built a successful LIS company that develops and licenses enterprise-level laboratory information system software (pathology lab software) heavily based on user feedback. 

Simply stated, we align our goals with the goals of our lab partners, and we take tremendous pride in giving them the medical LIS and laboratory billing (lab RCM) tools to become more efficient, more productive, and ultimately more profitable while maximizing the power of our pathology lab management system. 

We also believe what’s good for one lab partner should be good for all. That’s why enhancements and features developed on the LigoLab development roadmap are available to all our clients. 

Because of this, we remain in constant contact with our lab partners, letting them know when the latest lab information system updates are available and encouraging them to regularly update their LIS software environments so they can take advantage of the new tools and differentiate within their marketplaces. 

Quarterly webinars and annual user group meetings are useful ways to transfer knowledge from LigoLab personnel to the platform’s user base. 

For example, here’s a recap of LIS system enhancements and features discussed at a User Group Conference that LigoLab hosted in 2023. 

What’s New: A Summary of New LIS System Enhancements and Features 

Laboratory Information System Enhancements to Main Result Search 

New filters have been added to the application’s Main Result Search. 

• Patient State Filter
• Age Search Filter 
• Numeric Result Filter

LIS System Enhancements to Ordering Module 

Users can now clone an order with a new Special Action. This allows for a new order to be created with prepopulated data for all fields except for the patient fields, and the direct benefit is expedited order entry for multiple provider orders for the same test. 

The Remote Orders Queue has also been updated with new columns and functionality. 

LIS System Enhancements to the Remote Ordering Queue

The following are new columns and laboratory information system functions added to the Remote Ordering Queue.

• Added a “Provider” column
• Added a “Collected” column
• Added a “Req ID” column
• Renamed the “Created” column to “Released”
• Added the ability to auto-open a test order by scanning an external ID

Lab Information System Enhancements to the Anatomic Pathology LIS Module 

Next, we turn our attention to the Anatomic Pathology LIS Module and start by highlighting the Floating Report Preview, which allows the Lab Report to open as the Resulting Window does with changes observed in real-time. Pathologists simply love this. Going further,  a Favorite Stain List can also be configured and added for each pathologist based on needs and preferences. 

• Floating Report Preview 
• Pathologist Favorite Stain List

The Microscopic Test Result Details Window in the Anatomic Pathology LIS Module has also been enhanced with a new search option and filter.

• New Search Text option 
• Image Capture from the Result Tab (instead of the Devoted Images Tab)
• CPT & ICD Summaries added to the Lab Billing Tab 
• Site Filter added (for filtering cases with multiple sites)

The Site Manager in the Anatomic Pathology LIS Module has also undergone a significant makeover, starting with a new look to the Main Screen. 

• The Main Screen is modeled after other Master File Management Screens
• Two ways (icon and right-click) to edit configurations from the Main Screen
• Filtering with multiple selections of Element Types
• A “Show Inherited” Check Box has been added (to the left of the Element Types drop-down menu)
• Move configurations (drag and drop or copy and paste) with built-in restrictions that prevent incompatible actions 
• Inactivate site functionality that doesn’t affect historical cases

Laboratory Information System Enhancements to the Reporting Module 

Updates to the LIS system’s Reporting Module include the addition of configurable Dynamic Report Templates and a Report Center Manager that allows users to compile pre-built Stat Templates and Dynamic Reports into one list. This means Report Operations can now run from one centralized screen and no other navigation is needed. 

• Dynamic Report Templates
• Report Center Manager

LIS System Enhancements to Stats Reports

Next, Stats Reports in the Anatomic Pathology LIS, Reporting, and Operations Modules have all gained additional laboratory information system functions. 

• Slide Stats (Anatomic Pathology LIS Module) - A new report Slide TAT has been added
• IntraOp Stats (Anatomic Pathology LIS Module) - Added more Summary By options and a Templates option
• Correlation Stats (Anatomic Pathology LIS Module)  - Added more Summary By options and a Templates option
• Test Result Stats (Reporting Module) - Added an ICD Filter/Search option as well as a Summary By Client Group option 
• Specimen Stats (Operations Module) - Added additional search parameters including Tags, Workflow Actions, Workflow Actions Status, Client, Ordering Provider

LIS System Software Enhancements to the Operations Module 

Workflow Rack Placement is a new feature developed within the Operations Module. Now users can place a test on a rack in an order determined by a Worklist Configuration. For example, this can help with manual PCR testing setups where testing is grouped by the patient instead of the test or tests. With this new LIS system software feature multiple patients can be added to the same rack for different testing profiles in an order the user determines. 

Secondly, a Rack Description has been added to the Rack Management Queue and the Specimen Search View, with the rack locations filtered by what’s available for the user’s current facility. 

• Worklist Rack Placement - A newly added feature
• Rack Description - added to the Rack Management Queue and Specimen Search View
• Site Security for Racks 

LIS Medical Enhancements to the Administration Module 

The Administration Module now includes Time Zones that can be configured and applied at the following levels: Client, Client Group, Client Region, and Facility.  The Time Zone selected for the Facility will determine the relative time stamp applied to a user’s actions while logged into that facility. For the Client Group and Client Region, the Time Zone will determine the relative time stamp appearing on the client’s Patient Report. 

• Time Zones - Added as a new Master File in the General Folder
• Entity Data Import - a new feature that allows for multiple Entity Records to be batch imported into the LIS at one time 
• Lab Test Clone - Expedites the process of setting up similar tests 
• Lab Test Panel Specific Templates - Allows the user to configure Report Templates at the Panel Level

Lastly, Site Security in this LIS system module has been enabled for all customer environments as of version 2019.3.64. 

Miscellaneous Laboratory Information System Enhancements 

Lastly, here’s a summary of other miscellaneous enhancements that all LigoLab users should know about. 

• Paste Plain Text into a Rich Text Field - A new way to clear formatting when pasting text into fields (works for all Data Field Entities formatted as Rich Text - Notepad is no longer needed) 
• Search Audit Records (Administration Module) - Used to search all audit records within the LIS system 
• Show Attachments for Workflow Actions (Ordering Module) - Can be applied to either the entire Workflow Action Type or to a specific Workflow Action within a Type and when enabled the opening of a Workflow Action will also open a separate Floating Window of attachments associated with the Entity linked to the Workflow Action 
• Case Distribution Enhancements (Anatomic Pathology LIS Module) - Added a Histology Status Filter and a Template Filter to the Case Distribution Queue and more columns to the Daily Stats Mode
• Custom Logo on Splash Screen - Laboratories can now customize the application’s Launch Screen with their logo

As you can see by the previous summary of what’s new, we mean what we say when we refer to our all-in-one medical LIS and lab billing informatics platform as future-ready. Simply stated, this is a laboratory information system software your laboratory won’t grow out of. Instead, this laboratory information system will grow with you, providing the end-to-end efficiencies that all modern clinical laboratories and pathology groups need to excel. 

To learn more about recent enhancements and features and how they can benefit your laboratory operations, please contact us and speak with one of our talented LIS System Product Specialists. 

Learn More: What to Look Out for and Avoid When Shopping for a New LIS System

LigoLab: We Help Labs Become More Efficient and Profitable

LigoLab is a leading provider of innovative end-to-end pathology lab software for medical laboratories, servicing nearly 300 facilities nationwide. 

As a comprehensive enterprise-grade pathology lab software solution, the LigoLab LIS & RCM Laboratory Informatics Platform™ includes connected and embedded modules for anatomic pathology (anatomic pathology LIS, clinical laboratory (healthcare LIS), molecular diagnostics (molecular LIS), lab revenue cycle management (lab RCM), and direct-to-consumer lab testing (TestDirectly and TestDirectly.com). All modules reside on one powerful platform that supports every role, department, and case. 

LigoLab empowers laboratories to optimize patient care, differentiate themselves in the marketplace, scale their operations, and become more compliant and profitable.