What is the Best LIS for Molecular Testing Labs?

Whether the last time you looked into a new laboratory information system (LIS system; LIS meaning medical) was 10 years ago or a few short months ago, forget most of what you’ve been told. Traditional laboratory information systems for molecular testing labs are now completely obsolete. 

Nearly everything about the molecular laboratory ecosystem has changed, including medical LIS clinical lab workflow, service delivery, reporting structures, lab instrumentation, laboratory billing reimbursement procedures, third-party interoperability, and more. 

Unlike laboratory information systems of old modern LIS systems like LigoLab’s fully integrated LIS & RCM Informatics Platform can help labs tackle the ever-evolving lab environment with agility and ease.

In addition to this constant change, molecular testing labs are beginning to play a much more prominent role in healthcare delivery. No longer the workhorse tucked away in the hospital basement, molecular testing labs are now a vital, visible part of the healthcare package. 

Because of this, they require the best LIS software that goes beyond basic order capture and result delivery. They need a lab information system (pathology lab software) that ensures flexibility within and beyond the lab’s network, features specimen lifecycle sample tracking and support, promotes scalability and efficiency, and enhances the lab’s value as a revenue center and care partner. 

Learn More: Four Game-Changing Business Strategies to Improve Laboratory Processes

“Molecular testing labs play a vital role in today’s precision-focused medical world,” stated LigoLab CEO Suren Avunjian. “Rapid advances in biochemical and molecular genetics are driving precision medicine forward, which is a big reason we’re seeing increased demands on our molecular lab partners. We understand their unique needs and have created a LIS system software platform that is not only agile, but that also helps these labs scale their operations efficiently.”

The fact that these labs kept up with unprecedented demand and continued to scale even as COVID-19 cases surged during the pandemic demonstrates how powerful and agile the all-in-one LigoLab LIS system and laboratory revenue cycle management (lab RCM) platform is.

“The fastest growing laboratories in the U.S. during the pandemic were LigoLab clients,” continued Avunjian. “All of our molecular lab partners scaled their volumes exponentially, and some witnessed explosive growth.”

Learn More: Reduce Denials and Stop Revenue Leakage With Integrated Laboratory Billing Management

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The Role of Precision Medicine and Diagnostic Lab Software in the Growth of Molecular Testing Labs

At the intersection of data and patient specimens, more and more molecular testing labs are becoming the de facto interpreters of data-rich biospecimens. 

Within the practice of precision medicine, this elevated role is helping clinicians form a better understanding of clinical pathways and treatment options, including options for drug selection, specialized therapeutics, and more. 

This also means that diagnostic tests are becoming much more complicated, with results often so complex that physicians and their staff can’t easily understand them. Because of this, molecular labs are the logical source for helping healthcare providers understand the relevance of certain results.

“When we say that molecular testing labs are coming out of the basement, this is what we mean,” said Avunjian. “Today’s labs go well beyond traditional collection and reporting. Thanks to advanced molecular lab testing software, they are now often part of the broader diagnostics and treatment team.”

However, not all molecular testing labs find the opportunity to elevate their role within the healthcare ecosystem enticing, and some molecular lab directors and managers resist adding more strain to their current LIS lab workloads. 

However, most recognize the value clinical labs hold for advancing medicine, and forward-thinking lab directors and managers are turning to advanced molecular lab testing software platforms like LigoLab for molecular LIS testing operations and support. 

With future-ready medical LIS laboratory solutions like LigoLab's comprehensive and highly configurable platform, opportunistic lab operators can now take advantage of emerging digital technologies and the rapid growth of patient consumerism to open up new revenue sources. 

One way to do this is by offering patients diagnostic testing (direct-to-consumer lab testing) and preventative screenings from the comfort of their homes. 

LigoLab’s TestDirectly patient engagement portal (TestDirectly.com) fully supports at-home testing and laboratory services that include the online ordering of a test kit, the shipping of the test kit to the patient’s home, the laboratory’s receipt of the patient’s specimen after collection, the processing of the specimen, the automated delivery of the test results back to the patient, and the videoconferencing and scheduling of consultations if needed.

“TestDirectly supports any kind of direct-to-consumer lab testing and serves as a marketplace for enhanced and specialized laboratory services,” said Avunijian. “The TestDirectly portal enables laboratories to gain visibility and grow their brands as they align with consumers and provide them with a streamlined and unified experience.”

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

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How Labs Find More Value with LigoLab’s Molecular Lab Software Solution

Avero Diagnostics is one of many LigoLab partner labs that experienced unprecedented growth during the pandemic. The LigoLab-Avero partnership dates back several years with Avero first licensing LigoLab's LIS system software solution before also licensing LigoLab's lab revenue cycle management (lab RCM) module a few years later. 

Avero did this to benefit from LigoLab's all-in-one pathology software that unites all medical LIS and laboratory billing workflow into one powerful infrastructure and database that eliminates data silos and enables the lab billing cycle (laboratory billing process) to begin at order inception.

Just months into this new partnership, Avero was already witnessing sizable gains in efficiency, accuracy, and most importantly, net collections, which went up by 35 percent and has sustainably stayed at that level ever since.

Below is a link to a white paper highlighting Avero's sustained growth.  

White Paper: Leveraging LIS & RCM Integration to Improve the Laboratory Billing Process‍

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Molecular Lab Software that Ensures Agility in a Changing World

As mentioned earlier traditional laboratory information system software (LIS pathology systems) no longer cuts it in today’s clinical testing lab environment. Labs need molecular lab software capable of connecting all corners of the diagnostic landscape, including instrumentation, clinical laboratory management analytics, robust decision support, effective quality controls, third-party interoperability with EHRs, decision population health tools, and other laboratory software systems. 

An legacy LIS system that doesn’t have this sort of flexibility is unlikely to expand a lab’s ability to network in the healthcare community or enhance its diagnostic offerings as new options develop.

Learn More: Comparing LigoLab Informatics Platform with Legacy Laboratory Information System Software

“When molecular testing laboratories shop for laboratory information systems, they should carefully consider whether or not they can provide reliable interoperability and interface with an ever-changing array of healthcare partners and other mission-critical technologies,” added Avunjian. “It’s not only about what LIS systems can do today but also about how future-ready they are. LigoLab was built for today and tomorrow.”

The LigoLab LIS & RCM Laboratory Informatics Platform is a powerful and all-inclusive laboratory information system software solution that includes all the modules a modern molecular LIS (molecular lab software) should have to conduct specialized diagnostic testing with maximum efficiency. 

This list of functionality includes:

Unified Laboratory Workflow Management 

The LigoLab platform connects every lab function within one unified laboratory information system software infrastructure, ensuring end-to-end data integrity.

Specimen Management, Sample Tracking, and Patient Safety

Streamlined specimen management and sample tracking are vital for flawless laboratory operations. The LigoLab platform assigns a specimen-unique identifier as the order is placed and digitally tracks the specimen at every stage, ensuring error-free clinical laboratory management.

Quality Control and Quality Assurance

LigoLab’s Quality Control (QC) module and Quality Assurance (QA) compliance infrastructure provide a base for accurate LIS molecular testing, precise report distribution, and closely monitored operations. Ligolab supports various QC methodologies, such as Westgard Rules, biological variation methods, Lean Six Sigma, etc. 

The QC module allows live monitoring of control data and alerts users to abnormal readings to prevent instrument malfunction and erroneous test release. The QA infrastructure monitors every step of lab workflow management and ensures reliable and coherent operations throughout the testing process.

Cost Management

Cost management is critically important for clinical laboratories. Increasingly regulated reimbursement policies contribute to profit erosion. LigoLab’s real-time monitoring and reporting tools enable users to easily generate important performance analytic reports that provide the valuable insight lab leadership needs to make informed business decisions.

Learn More: Mastering Real-Time Analytics in the Clinical Laboratory: A Comprehensive Guide

Laboratory Information System Interoperability

LigoLab features an open architecture laboratory information system platform with a proprietary interface engine. The interface engine provides maximum interoperability, enabling the LigoLab platform to seamlessly connect to all analyzers, EHRs, and third-party plug-ins. This includes lab information system software and lab RCM internal networking plus connections to external bodies, such as laboratory billing services, the Tumor Registry, state reporting agencies, etc.

The interface engine supports all standard interchange protocols, including FHIR HL7, XML, X12, CSV, PDF, Flat File, ASTM, and Restful API. 

Learn More: LigoLab Delivers the LIS System Interoperability Needed to Transform Medical Laboratories into Thriving Businesses

Optimize Clinical Laboratory Management and Scale Your Business

LigoLab is constantly evolving and every day, new features and enhancements are added to the LIS laboratory information system platform. Through domain expertise, best practices, and customer feedback analysis, the LIS company boosts its lab partners by giving them a platform that automates lab workflow, increases productivity, and positions them to scale their businesses quickly.

Regulatory Compliance Made Easy

Compliance without a flexible diagnostic lab software platform is quite challenging and labor-intensive. LigoLab offers a variety of specialized tools that reduce audit risk and revenue loss. Users can effectively operate within the guidelines of CAP, CLIA, HIPAA, and other regulatory agencies to mitigate compliance concerns and avoid penalties.

Support for Consumerism

With LigoLab, medical laboratories can directly connect with patients while expanding laboratory services. The TestDirectly direct-to-consumer lab testing patient engagement portal makes this possible by replacing paper forms and manual processes with a simplified digital workflow that starts with patient self-registration and eliminates the potential for human errors, order entry bottlenecks, reporting delays, and patient and provider frustration. 

The cloud-based portal is the key to unlocking laboratory testing capacity and turnaround times, all while enhancing the patient experience. 

TestDirectly supports all forms of specimen collection (at-home, drive-through, walk-up, concierge, etc.) and all forms of patient and employer/organizational testing, including school surveillance/pooled testing.

Questions About LigoLab’s Pathology Software Solutions? Just Ask

LigoLab is a laboratory information system software company known for investing in partnerships with its LIS system and lab billing customers. The LIS company offers a comprehensive and enterprise-grade SaaS solution that takes full responsibility for all lab informatics, thus empowering lab management with an advanced laboratory workflow solution that supports their ecosystem independently of other external lab vendors.

Is your lab operation ready to experience a digital transformation with a future-ready laboratory information system? 

If yes, click HERE to start a conversation with a LigoLab Product Specialist.

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