Analytical laboratories exist to offer leading services to various sectors across the science industry, from pharmaceuticals to food safety and environmental monitoring. An analytical lab is responsible for testing, measuring and analysing samples across these scientific sectors and plays an integral role in ensuring product quality, safety and regulatory compliance.
However, due to the immense responsibility for efficiency and accuracy in analytical laboratories, challenges often arise in the day-to-day management of processes and procedures. Martel are well versed in working alongside analytical laboratories of all varieties, here’s the common hurdles we’ve helped clients like you overcome:
Roughly 60-70% of clinical decisions regarding hospital admissions and discharges are based on laboratory results, therefore data accuracy and integrity in analytical labs is non-negotiable.
A study conducted at a Clinical Medical Laboratory in Tehran recently looked to examine the frequency of errors at each phase of testing, finding that 6.3% of the samples had errors, across the pre analytical, analytical and post analytical phases. Many of these errors were due to inaccurate labelling and improper data entry which result in flawed analysis, misinterpretations and erroneous conclusions, which therefore impacted the integrity of the research or diagnosis.
Research indicates that effective integration between automation and information management is key to assuring a more sophisticated control of laboratory processes. To improve standardisation, organisation, efficiency and quality of the total testing process, many manual tasks that have been seen to cause these errors, can be managed through automation.
Laboratories operating in various fields including pharmaceuticals, medical, diagnostics and research and development all face a complex range of regulatory compliance challenges. All of which impact their day-to-day operations and influence their long-term compliance strategies.
Adhering to regulatory standards means maintaining stringent quality control processes, accurate record keeping and regular audits, all of which can have significant impacts on how labs function, their efficiency and their ability to innovate.
Sample and workflow management can be challenging due to several factors, such as:
Sample identification and labelling – handwritten labels often become problematic, whether this be due to the handwriting, pen fading overtime or duplicated references causing confusion and errors.
Sample tracking – identifying samples can be time-consuming, if your laboratory uses outdated or paper-based systems this can cause delays and reduce your labs efficiency.
Data management – in labs that handle large volumes of data from various instruments and processes, data management becomes complex. Ensuring data is accurately recorded and easily accessible is crucial.
Resource coordination – efficiently coordinating resources and personnel, tracking inventory and maintaining a secure environment is essential for optimising lab productivity.
In many laboratories, a considerable amount of time is wasted conducting manual monitoring processes, for example weekly recording of fridge temperatures. This time could be better spent on more productive tasks that add value to laboratory operations and the services provided to customers.
The data collected in analytical laboratories must remain confidential. In order to maintain confidentiality labs must implement measures to safeguard the data. Whether this be patient records, research findings or proprietary data, it must be protected from unauthorised access, disclosure and alteration. If the essential measures aren’t taken to protect and store data, the integrity of your laboratory can be severely damaged, there may be financial consequences, legal implications and huge impacts on your reputation.
Ensuring your analytical lab has an efficient pathway between produced data and the management systems is essential to maintaining the safety and integrity of your data. Using systems with miscommunicated datasets, or partial datasets, can also have significant impacts on the day to day running of your laboratory as it can lead to loss, corruption or delays in accessing critical information.
Proper validation of the data collected in an analytical lab is essential for ensuring that reliable data is produced, the risks of using a system that is not properly validated include:
Without validation to collected data, a laboratory cannot be sure of reliability, having serious consequences for healthcare analytical labs in terms of misdiagnosis or inadequate treatment, as well as for research based analytical labs where failure to adhere to regulatory compliance leads to potential legal and financial implications.
Manual data entry is often the cause of these issues and will become an evolving problem as your business grows, increasing the risk of error as a result. Through automated validation, however, you can achieve scalable reporting, and as a result eliminate the problems associated with manual data entry entirely and reduce the opportunity for errors.
We understand that analytical scientists rely heavily on solving these challenges in order to professionally and efficiently run their laboratory. Our range of thermographic printers and the Vida Labbox are designed to do just that. With two produces comes one solution, here’s how:
Implementing data capture technology will significantly reduce the manual steps required to identify and log samples. Combining our thermographic printers and the Vida Labbox ensures seamless data transfer to your management system.
As soon as a sample is scanned, its associated data is automatically captured an updated in the LIMS or ELN system eliminating the risk of error.
Our integrated solutions automate the transfer from instruments to LIMS, quality control systems, or data reporting platforms. Bringing you one step closer to a lab of the future!
Every action taken on a sample, from collection to analysis, can be logged and tracked, ensuring full traceability. When utilising high quality printing and electronic data output solutions, you create a clear chain of custody which ensures that the samples integrity.
Data is transferred to one place from various collection locations, making it easier for analysts and managers to access and share data across departments. Eliminating the issue of fragmented data.
Our systems can be built to suit the needs of your lab, whether it’s a small lab or large organisation. We clearly define the data channels from any point in your lab and integrate the right produce to ensure a specific solution to your needs.
As your lab grows and adopts new instruments, your data system can remain effective. Ensuring your data management systems are scalable is the most effective way to save resource, time and money as your laboratory grows and changes.
We’re confident that our solutions hold the power to solve your analytical labs day to day challenges. If you’re interested in learning more about how our printed and electronic interfacing solutions can help you manage these challenges in your analytical lab, visit us at Eastern Analytical Symposium, or contact us today!
