The DOI matches its Crossref record; 15 of the 15 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Improving Turnaround Times through a Process Improvement Initiative Involving Barcoding, Floorplans, Dual Measuring Cells, Chemistry Analyzers, and Staff Shifts
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Specimen turnaround time (TAT) is an important metric for laboratory safety and quality. Various methods to improve TAT have seen success using process improvement initiatives. However, there are limited data on barcoding, pneumatic receiving proximity to modular preanalytics, 1 vs 2 measuring cells, and upgrading to Cobas 8000. The example describes the complete execution of a process improvement initiative to improve TAT within these areas over a 20-month period. The study aimed to improve specimen timeliness by decreasing the TAT for preanalytic and analytic specimen processing through a systematic process improvement initiative and to empower staff to "own" their scientific method. METHODS: The primary outcome TAT was reported from a prospective quality initiative beginning January 2017 for 2 analytes: troponin and potassium. TATs for albumins from the complete metabolic panels were added to the study design retrospectively during team rounds. Mean TAT was defined as time from arrival to verified times. Process improvement tools within the study design were borrowed from Lean management. RESULTS: After implementation of the process improvement initiative, the number of steps medical laboratory assistants and technologists performed per specimen decreased from 8 to 5. Mean TATs decreased for all analytes. Preimplementation to postimplementation comparisons from 2017 to 2018 decreased for all 3 analytes and within 2017. The number of troponin specimens verified within 60 min improved from 70% in January 2017 to 95% in August 2018, with an improvement from 64% in January 2017 to 87% in August 2018 during peak hours. CONCLUSIONS: A systematic process improvement initiative whereby employees "own" the scientific process within specimen preanalytic and analytic testing phases can significantly improve metrics for laboratory quality and safety.
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“Such improvements have been shown to reduce the TAT [26–30].”
From Shorter laboratory turnaround time is associated with shorter emergency department length of stay: a retrospective cohort study (2022) · cites this paper as [28]
Citations
Cites
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Creating and sustaining a Lean culture of continuous process improvement.
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Evaluation of Stat and Routine Turnaround Times as a Component of Laboratory Quality
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A six sigma trial for reduction of error rates in pathology laboratory
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Thakur, V., Akerele, O. A., & Randell, E. W. (2022) · Critical Reviews in Clinical Laboratory Sciences · doi:10.1080/10408363.2022.2106544 · Cited by 71
Tlapa, D. A., Tortorella, G., Fogliatto, F., Kumar, M., Cawley, A. M. M., Vassolo, R., Enberg, L., & Baez-López, Y. (2022) · International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health · doi:10.3390/ijerph19159018 · Cited by 46
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Trongnit, S., Reesukumal, K., Kost, G. J., Nilanont, Y., & Pratumvinit, B. (2022) · Archives of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine · doi:10.5858/arpa.2021-0444-oa · Cited by 3
Metadata
- Authors
- Jensen, K., Haniff, R., Kamarinos, A., Rosenberg, A., Santiago, M., & Laser, J.
- Affiliations
- Hofstra University (US)
- Long Island Jewish Medical Center (US)
- Corresponding author
- Jensen, Kendal
- Venue
- The Journal of Applied Laboratory Medicine
- Publisher
- Oxford University Press (OUP)
- Published
- 2019-04-17
- Volume
- 4
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 311-322
- ISSN
- 2475-7241 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2936542820
- Cited by
- 10
- References
- 15
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2024: 2 · 2023: 1 · 2022: 5 · 2021: 1
- FWCI
- 1.03
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- The Journal of Applied Laboratory Medicine (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › Medical Laboratory Technology › Clinical Laboratory Practices and Quality Control
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Healthcare Quality and Management
- Social Sciences › Decision Sciences › Management Science and Operations Research › Healthcare Operations and Scheduling Optimization
- Keywords
- process improvement, barcoding, floor plans, chemistry analyzer, lean manufacturing, troponin, potassium, laboratory quality, laboratory safety
- MeSH terms
- Shift Work Schedule, Diagnostic Tests, Routine, Emergency Service, Hospital, Health Plan Implementation, Humans, Laboratories, Hospital, Time Factors, Biomarkers, Efficiency, Organizational, Chemistry, Analytic, Workflow, Quality Improvement
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- CoChat. (2026). Citation check: Improving Turnaround Times through a Process Improvement Initiative Involving Barcoding, Floorplans, Dual Measuring Cells, Chemistry Analyzers, and Staff Shifts. https://app.cochat.ai/papers/10.1373/jalm.2018.028555
- The paper
- Jensen, K., Haniff, R., Kamarinos, A., Rosenberg, A., Santiago, M., & Laser, J. (2019). Improving Turnaround Times through a Process Improvement Initiative Involving Barcoding, Floorplans, Dual Measuring Cells, Chemistry Analyzers, and Staff Shifts. The Journal of Applied Laboratory Medicine. https://doi.org/10.1373/jalm.2018.028555
