Electronic Management of Referral Laboratories Information

Joanne Duffy

Craig Webster

Current Situation

• Out of date

• Unable to update information

• Limited information available

– Not UKAS compliant

Developed an API

• https://api.reflabs.uk/

What's an API

• Application Programming Interface

• An API isn’t the same as the remote server — rather it is the part of the server that receives requests and sends responses.

• True separation of data from presentation

Structured Data

Why API?

• APIs allow you to free your data and develop multiple uses on different platforms and scenarios

Introduction

• It is a UKAS ISO 15189 requirement (standard 4.5) that laboratories should have a documented procedure for selecting, evaluating and monitoring referral laboratories.

• Historically, this has been managed on Q-pulse using Word and Excel documents.

Introduction

• This system is time consuming for both our laboratory and the referral labs involved

– Inefficient

– subject to error

– hard to maintain in real time

Aim

• To develop an electronic application for managing referral laboratory information, which will reduce time spent maintaining this information and ultimately produce a solution that can be extended for use by other laboratories.

Methods/Specifications

A Windows based application was developed internally at HGS to meet the following specifications:

1. A clear and easily editable database with full audit trail.2. A colour coded, sortable table of laboratories and tests to enable direct visualisation of referral labs and the status of their information.3. Automated generation of letters for monitoring quality of performance with auto-population of existing data held on the laboratories.4. Two access levels, one for staff involved in sending samples to view information and another for administration purposes.5. Electronic storage for returned information.6. Ability to record acceptance of information.

Results and conclusion

• A referral lab application has been produced that is in routine use at HEFT.

• The application has significantly reduced workload associated with collecting and maintaining information on referral labs.

• This application has potential for use on a wider national scale and could look to compete with assayfinder.com in the future.

Further Developments

• NPEx

– Development of a National Laboratory Medicine Catalogue

Further Development

• Full public facing website to replace assayfinder.com

– Development with the ACB

– Examination of coding standards e.g C-NPU

– http://www.ifcc.org/ifcc-scientific-division/sd-committees/c-npu/