COVER STORIES
The Transformation of MedicineLabs Key to New ParadigmsBy Genna Rollins
Plenary speakers at the 2010 AACC Annual Meeting offered an intriguing glimpse into the future of medicine, from advancements in Alzheimer’s disease diagnostics and use of pluripotent stem cells to a systems approach to healthcare delivery based on predictive, personalized medicine.
The Future of Lab LeadershipWhat Will it Take to Navigate the Changes Ahead?By Bill Malone
Lab leaders discussed how current and future generations will shape the leadership in clinical labs during a symposium at the 2010 AACC Annual Meeting. Among the challenges facing the next generation of lab directors are shifting business models, stepped-up scrutiny from regulators, and understanding how to manage multiple generations of employees.
SERIES ARTICLE
Type 1 Diabetes AutoantibodiesPrediction and Diagnosis of Autoimmune DiabetesBy Patricia W. Mueller, PhD, Peter Achenbach, MD, Vito Lampasona, Michael Schlosser, PhD, and Alistair J. K. Williams
Autoantibody tests are used to distinguish between autoimmune diabetes and diabetes due to other causes. This article describes the latest advances in testing for autoantibodies predictive of type 1 diabetes, as well as assay standardization efforts by the Diabetes Autoantibody Standardization Program.
NEWS BRIEF
IVD Market Set For Continued Growth
PATIENT SAFETY FOCUS
Organizing Specimen Processing for High Quality and Efficiency Q & A with Linda NesbergLinda Nesberg, operations manager at Mayo Medical Laboratories, offers her solutions for receipt and processing of specimens and their associated tests. Nesberg also discussed Lean principles and how incorporating Lean can improve lab efficiency. What Can Laboratory Directors Learn from Baseball?By James S. Hernandez, MD, MS In a baseball game, the term “chin music” refers to a pitch that comes dangerously close to the batter’s head. As a lab director, sometimes standing up for patient safety issues is like standing up to a dangerous pitch. How to Categorize Incident Reports to Fuel Quality ImprovementA Model-Based Approach for Process and Behavior IncidentsBy Peggy A. Ahlin, BS, MT (ASCP) and Bonnie Messinger When categorizing incident reports it is important to first define your goal. Determine what information you want to obtain and what you plan on doing with it. The focus should be to facilitate process improvement and/or promote behavior change. The Monday Morning QuarterbackHindsight Bias in Medical Decision MakingBy Karen Appold Hindsight bias describes the tendency to judge the events leading up to an accident as errors because the bad outcome is known. Learn how safety analysis experts are applying the hindsight bias model to medical decision making.
Linda Nesberg, operations manager at Mayo Medical Laboratories, offers her solutions for receipt and processing of specimens and their associated tests. Nesberg also discussed Lean principles and how incorporating Lean can improve lab efficiency.
What Can Laboratory Directors Learn from Baseball?By James S. Hernandez, MD, MS
In a baseball game, the term “chin music” refers to a pitch that comes dangerously close to the batter’s head. As a lab director, sometimes standing up for patient safety issues is like standing up to a dangerous pitch.
How to Categorize Incident Reports to Fuel Quality ImprovementA Model-Based Approach for Process and Behavior IncidentsBy Peggy A. Ahlin, BS, MT (ASCP) and Bonnie Messinger
When categorizing incident reports it is important to first define your goal. Determine what information you want to obtain and what you plan on doing with it. The focus should be to facilitate process improvement and/or promote behavior change.
The Monday Morning QuarterbackHindsight Bias in Medical Decision MakingBy Karen Appold
Hindsight bias describes the tendency to judge the events leading up to an accident as errors because the bad outcome is known. Learn how safety analysis experts are applying the hindsight bias model to medical decision making.
AACC ANNUAL MEETING AND EXPO HIGHLIGHTS
2010 AACC Annual Meeting and Clinical Lab Expo Set New Records
For the first time, the total numbers of attendees at AACC Annual Meeting exceeded 20,000, and the Clinical Lab Expo was officially AACC’s largest ever with almost 2,000 booths and more than 700 companies exhibiting. Featured are product highlights from the five largest IVD manufacturers.
PROFILES
Regulatory Profiles
Industry Profiles
Diagnostic Profiles
News from the FDA
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