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The Benefits of a Modern Pathology Lab Management System
June 26, 2024
It’s well-known that clinical laboratories and pathology groups handle extreme quantities of data due to the many kinds of samples tested in their medical facilities. With the various patient samples they assess daily, an extraordinary amount of data is processed and stored in a pathology lab management system (pathology software).
To properly store a patient’s information (demographics, insurance, testing history, etc.), and guard against diagnostic errors an efficient and reliable lab pathology software system that meets the needs of all medical laboratories is a must.
Learn More: Top 10 Medical Laboratory Mistakes and How to Prevent Them from Happening in Your Lab
Putting Laboratory Information System Software To Work in Your Lab Environment
Medical laboratories (anatomic, clinical, reference, molecular) need effective laboratory workflow management systems to enhance productivity, customer relations, and profitability.
The centerpiece of lab workflow management in modern labs is the laboratory information system (LIS abbreviation medical). The LIS system helps them efficiently store large amounts of data and manage test samples and results. This ensures lab productivity in their operations and data integrity from order intake to lab report delivery.
The best LIS software (a.k.a. pathology software or LIS medical software) helps optimize crucial record-keeping for multiple departments and, in some cases, even has inventory management system functionality.
The lab information system ensures data accuracy and efficiency, speeding up laborious tasks and the turnaround time needed to complete the testing cycle from accessioning to report delivery that benefits clinicians and patients.
Laboratory information system software (sometimes confused with laboratory information management system software) greatly assists lab professionals, turning paper-dominated lab workflow into seamless digital processes.
The LIS system in healthcare offers a comprehensive solution for eliminating and preventing errors, simplifying otherwise complex operations, and meeting a client's growing demands and requests.
Learn More: Can Your Laboratory Information System Support the Latest LIS System Technology?
Advances in Pathology Software
In this age of technological advancements, with every passing day, there are more efficient and comprehensive pathology software systems (pathology LIS systems) than in the past. Thanks to an even greater understanding of what’s needed by laboratory information system vendors, medical LIS systems now provide more convenient access to results and records, laboratory billing and claim status, online payments, and more.
Learn More: Questions All Pathology Labs Should Ask When Evaluating LIS Software and Support
By using modern LIS medical solutions with enhanced capabilities it’s possible to set up an online patient portal or client portal and cater to customers that wish to become direct-to-consumer labs that offer direct-to-consumer lab testing (TestDirectly and TestDirectly.com).
Learn More: Highlighting the Versatility of the TestDirectly Direct-to-Consumer Lab Testing Portal
In medical laboratories, customer service can now be improved with this user-friendly way for patients and clients to view medical reports that were once kept on paper and confined to folders. It is also possible to offer convenience for patients to pay their bills faster through the patient online portal option.
Learn More: LigoLab Gives Labs a Convenient and User-Friendly Way to Incentivize Patients and Accelerate Payments
How Modern Pathology Software Benefits All Lab Departments
Whether you are a pathologist, lab tech, lab director, lab manager, or tech support, modern pathology software in the form of a laboratory information system is here to make your life easier.
Here are some of the benefits each department stands to gain:
Pathologists
Pathologists experience an enhanced and streamlined lab workflow (fewer clicks and faster sign-outs), and higher customer and patient satisfaction. A modern and feature-rich lab information system leads to highly configurable patient report templates and multiple forms of distribution, and advanced LIS systems also support macros and automated CPT and ICD-10 coding.
Learn More: How LigoLab's Pathology Lab Software Supports Lab Report Customization and Client Preferences
Lab Directors, Managers, and CEOs
Lab directors, managers, and CEOs benefit from laboratory information system LIS with maximum operational and financial efficiency, transparency, and interoperability, creating a competitive advantage in the marketplace.
This is because of the modern laboratory information system functions, features, modules, automation, and rules provided by the best LIS software. The best laboratory information system software helps synchronize and validate analytical instruments and standardizes medical data outputs for improved lab quality management.
IT Directors
When built as an enterprise-level solution a medical laboratory information system eliminates the need for multiple laboratory software systems and instead provides a trusted and strategic partner that handles all of the lab’s informatics.
At the same time, the LIS system software also provides tools for full flexibility and self-service control of configurations. This agile LIS software reduces the technical issues and the headaches that can arise when working with multiple systems and lab vendors.
Lab Techs
Whether it is molecular lab software or diagnostic lab software in the form of an anatomic pathology LIS, these modern systems provide direct benefits by streamlining lab workflow. Sample tracking in real-time and barcoding are simplified and enhanced, which minimizes the risk of human error and the chance of lost or mislabeled samples.
Learn More: How Specimen Tracking Software Improves Efficiency and Reduces the Chance for Diagnostic Errors
Modern Pathology Software: How Does it Work?
Modern pathology software supports several important laboratory functions, including order entry, front-end case validation, sample tracking, and interoperability.
Order Entry
Laboratory information system software enhances order entry via interfaces that receive remote orders from various electronic health record (EHR) systems. This means that a typical laboratory bottleneck (the one that occurs when an order is manually entered into the medical LIS) is now, thanks to a new level of interoperability, a thing of the past as orders automatically populate within the medical LIS.
Front-End Validation
For front-end validation to ensure a clean claim and payment without delay, modern LIS systems that feature patient insurance eligibility checking and insurance discovery at the beginning of the laboratory billing cycle (laboratory revenue cycle management) enjoy a distinct advantage over others. Modern LIS systems also offer patient white page address lookup and USPS validation to ensure the correct address for patient invoicing is found so a mistake isn’t made at this stage.
Learn More: Leveraging LIS System & Lab RCM Integration to Improve the Laboratory Billing Process
Sample Tracking
The best LIS software vendors have made modern pathology lab solutions ideal for superior sample tracking management. Every specimen receives a unique ID and is tracked throughout the lab workflow while maintaining the parent and child relationships for the other specimens. For anatomic pathology workflow (anatomic pathology LIS) this involves sample tracking from point of origin, accessioning, case assembly, and resulting.
Reporting
For producing attractive and easy-to-read lab reports, the laboratory information system takes center stage by supporting report templating, building, and delivery.
The best laboratory information system software provides well-organized, powerful, integrated reports, which can be delivered to clients through multiple channels based on their preferences. Delivery options include provider portal, outreach software, EHR, fax, secure email, in-house printing, APIs, IVR, SMS, PDRF drops, or remote print server.
The Bottom Line on Pathology Software and Modern Laboratory Information Systems
The best laboratory information system software solutions support the management team and the lab’s clients. There are many laboratory information system vendors to choose from, so it’s important to select the LIS company that offers the features and functionality needed for today and has the scalability and vendor support needed for future growth.
A good first place to start is by selecting a Laboratory Information System Selection Committee.
Learn More: How to Set Up a Committee to Select a Laboratory Information System
LigoLab’s laboratory information system solution, known as the LigoLab LIS & RCM Laboratory Informatics Platform, is a great example of what type of enterprise-level pathology software is available for those savvy lab leaders who understand an LIS system software upgrade is needed if the lab is to achieve its operational and financial goals.
Learn More: Stability and Performance: The Two Most Important Aspects of a Modern Laboratory Operation
Have any questions about the features and capabilities of the LigoLab LIS & RCM Laboratory Informatics Platform, or if you’re curious as to which LigoLab pricing tier represents the best fit for your LIS system and lab billing workflow, we invite you to click on the link below to set up a brief consultation with one of our talented Product Specialists.
