Heritage Valley First in Tri-State Area to Use Automated Lab Equipment

BEAVER, Pa., Feb. 15 /PRNewswire/ — Heritage Valley is the first health system in the tri-state area to have a fully automated clinical laboratory. The laboratory’s new equipment will significantly improve turnaround time for results and improve the safety of laboratory processes by automating the entire testing process. Skilled technicians will closely monitor the equipment function and review results for accuracy.

“Many people are unaware that 60 to 80 percent of the data in a patient’s clinical record is related to laboratory testing,” said Director of Laboratory Services Shelly Lewis. “This technology will provide a safer environment for our staff, speed up the testing process, virtually eliminate the potential for errors and improve laboratory efficiency.”

Automation is a key strategy in the Heritage Valley Patient Safety Plan, according to Chief Operating Officers Daniel H. Brooks, M.D. and Rosemary Nolan, Esq. Both affirmed that the reduction in variation in the laboratory process is consistent with Heritage Valley’s LEAN and Six Sigma approaches that are designed to reduce errors in health care. Reducing the number of times a specimen must be handled decreases the chances of mislabeling a specimen and other errors. The automated system also provides a safer environment for lab technicians by reducing the opportunity for exposure.

Efficient processing is just one key step in getting accurate data to physicians quickly. To increase access to this vital information, lab data will also be available through the Clinical Access Portal (CAP), an online tool for physicians and clinical staff that contains patient health information. Currently, over 100 affiliated Heritage Valley physicians use a handheld device that can access this data anywhere, anytime, allowing them to be more efficient in delivering quality health care to patients.

More than 3,000 specimens are delivered daily to the Heritage Valley Core Laboratory at Heritage Valley Beaver to undergo a battery of tests that are a vital tool for physicians to diagnose and determine patient treatments. The lab processes specimens collected from its hospitals in Sewickley and Beaver, from fourteen community lab draw sites, and from a multitude of physician offices and nursing homes. The lab is fully accredited by the College of American Pathologists, the Department of Health, JCAHO and CLIA.

Heritage Valley Health System provides comprehensive health care for residents of Allegheny, Beaver, Butler and Lawrence counties, in Pennsylvania; eastern Ohio; and the panhandle of West Virginia. In partnership with more than 500 physicians, Heritage Valley offers a broad range of medical, surgical and diagnostic services at its two hospitals, Heritage Valley Sewickley and Heritage Valley Beaver; in physician offices; and community satellite facilities. For more information about Heritage Valley Health System, please visit http://www.heritagevalley.org/.

Heritage Valley Health System

CONTACT: Scott Monit, of Heritage Valley Health System, +1-724-773-2046

Web site: http://www.heritagevalley.org/