How are automation and connectivity driving better patient care?
How are automation and connectivity driving better patient care?
Healthcare providers face seemingly contradictory demands: reduce costs, provide an efficient service to more patients, and improve quality of care. For Anatomical Pathology laboratories, automation and connectivity make it possible to achieve all three goals. In particular, advances in IHC automation continue to improve what was previously a manual process.
The most obvious benefit of automation for IHC laboratories is reduced labor costs and improved efficiency. With instruments now fully automating IHC from baking/dewax through to counterstaining, technicians are no longer tied to the bench. This helps laboratories meet increased demands while also managing reduced budgets.
Most importantly, automation enhances patient care. Modern instruments dramatically reduce diagnostic turnaround times with fast IHC stainers completing more slides and cases each day, patients receive a faster diagnosis. Their efficient operation also means laboratories can offer a wider range of complex diagnostic test to more patient for a more precise diagnosis. Finally, patients and pathologists benefit from the exceptional consistency that automation offers by removing much or the human-derived variability that occurs with manual staining.
Laboratory connectivity also improves efficiency and patient safety by linking IHC stainers directly to a central Laboratory Information System (