Summary LABORATORY INFORMATION MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

LABORATORY INFORMATION MANAGEMENT SYSTEM - communicate info via policies, processes, and procedures - needs updating - documents - capture info on worksheets, forms, labels, and charts - permanent, do not change - records quality manual, SOPs, and job aids are examples of - documents QC info, patient records, patient reports are examples of - records major product of the laboratory, so manage it carefully w/ a good system for the lab's documents and records - information - a document statement of overall intentions and direction defined by those in the org and endorsed by management - what to do - includes org mission, goals, and purpose - serves as the framework for the quality system should always be specified in the quality manual - policy - set of interrelated or interacting activities that transform inputs into outputs - steps involved in carrying out quality policies - represented in flow charts - involve a series of steps, usually occurring over a period of time - process set of interrelated or interacting activities that transform inputs into outputs - process step by step instructions for performing a single activity - SOP shortened version of the SOP; does not replace the SOP - job aid hierarchy of documents - - policies - processes - procedures a document describing the quality management system of an organization - quality manual - communicates info - serves as a framework or roadmap for meeting quality management system reqs - demonstrates management commitment to quality - quality manual written SOPs help ensure - - consistency - accuracy - quality used at the top of the first page only - complete standardized header - other pages of every procedure - use at the top of all other pages - reduced standardized header - system for organizing, such as numbering or coding system - approval, distribution, and revision process - master log that describes which docs are in circulation - accessibility of docs at the point of use - system for archiving - document control elements include in the laboratory document control system - instrument service manuals - ISO standards - references used for documentation - documents of external origin document preparation and control processes - - preparation - review - revision - approval - issue distribution - collect existing docs and records - review and update - determine addtl needs - develop or obtain docs, forms, worksheets, logbooks, reports - involves stakeholders - implementing document control factors affecting retention times - - national legislation and regulation - research purposes = time between assessments - testing process review - process of transferring information from a sender to a receiver uses a medium in which both sender and receiver understand the communicated info - common language - communication elements of communication - sender, message, receiver - originates and sends the message - responsibility is to ensure their message is perceived as intended - sender words and/or nonverbal expressions that transmit meaning - message the ultimate destination of the sender's message - receiver - typical aligned according to the org chart or structure of the facility usually follows an organizational hierarchy - strict lines of authority are followed - formal communication main type is the grapevine - informal communication is useful in direct person-to-person and group communication - oral communication most important feature of oral communication is that it provides ? - immediate feedback - provides a permanent record to which the receiver can refer to ensure he understands the info presented - provides an accuracy of info as well as permanence - written communication important ingredients of effective writing - content, style, technique, and format - photographs, paintings, diagrams, designs, cartoons and caricatures are example of types of pictures used as visual communication aid - easier to understand than written explanations - visual communication - flow of communication beyond the lab includes that between the lab and the institution's administration - written communication tends to be more formal and needs to be structured - interdepartamental - laboratory managers must encourage a routine exchange of thoughts and messages between the lab departments, management and staff, and different shifts - w/o good internal communication, the potential for error increases - intradepartamental - should clearly specify the test to perform and the service required (routine or stat) - time of collection should also be indicated - requisition responsible for all lab reports - laboratory head reports should all be signed and initialed by - MT and the pathologist is the final product of the laboratory - test result is responsible for establishing policies and procedures to : - safeguard a patient's privacy - assure lab data confidentiality - security computerized LIMS advantages - - error reduction - QC - data retrieval options - detailed, legible reports - track reports - track, analyze trends - access control - financial management - integrate w/ other sites computerized LIMS disadvantages - - training: time and money - adapting to a new system - costs: purchase and maintenance - back-up reqs