Author/Editor		Prijatelj, Vesna
Title		The optimization of turnaround time for blood samples in an emergency clinical laboratory
Translated title		Optimalni čas testiranja krvnih vzorcev v kliničnem urgentnem laboratoriju
Type		članek
Source		Inform Med Slov Print ed
Vol. and No.		Letnik 3, št. 1-3
Publication year		1996
Volume		str. 91-5
Language		eng
Abstract		The University Medical Centre Ljubljana is a 3000-bed general hospital and the largest medical institution in Slovenia. It has a central emergency laboratory, which performs 50% of all test requested for in-patients and 20% of all tests for patients visiting the out-patient clinics. A laboratory information system (LIS), developed to improve the reliability and usefulness of test results, was installed in the emergency laboratory in November 1994. At that time, all test requests received by the laboratory were treated as equally urgent, but in December 1994, a reorganisation took place, which involved the introduction of a priority system. Samples arriving from the emergency department were assigned 1st priority, samples from intensive care units 2nd or 3rd priority, and samples form other units 4th priority. The expected turnaround times were defined for each priority level. We conducted a study in the emergency laboratory in the period from November 1994 to September 1995. The turnaround time forblood analyses was evaluated by the method of case study. Turnaround times for sodium determinations, blood cell counts and blood gas analyses were measured, and the mean monthly values were calculated for each test. The influence of information technology and organisational changes on individual components of the turnaround time was assesed. This study has shown a positive effect of the recently introduced information technology and organisation changes on the turnaround time for blood samples. The median turnaround time improved for all phases of the laboratory process. The greatest improvement occured in validity check time for blood test results.
Descriptors		LABORATORIES, HOSPITAL EMERGENCY SERVICE, HOSPITAL CLINICAL LABORATORY INFORMATION SYSTEMS HEMATOLOGIC TESTS MEDICAL RECORDS BLOOD CELL COUNT SODIUM BLOOD GAS ANALYSIS