Annual Report 2010 - St. James's Hospital

Clinical Service Directorates I LabMed
Information Technology projects
The development and introduction of the GP order
communications (OCM) module of Healthlink occurred in
June 2009. By December 2009, 50% of GPs were using the
system successfully. Further enhancements are progressing,
particularly in the interfacing of the module to GP practice
management systems. The aim is for 90% usage by GPs by
the 4th quarter of 2011.
At the end of 2010 a number of projects were initiated for
laboratory to laboratory electronic links for test requesting
and reporting. This will be completed in fi rst quarter of 2011
and will link the midland hospitals and Drogheda hospital with
St. James’s Hospital laboratory. The electronic link between
AMiNCH, Tallaght and St, James’s Hospital was also initiated
in 2010 and completed in February 2011.
New Equipment
A tender for the acquisition of new immunoassay equipment,
mainly in endocrinology, was issued in 2009 and completed
in early 2010. New and updated equipment in haematology
has also been purchased. This was part of the overall
development plan for total automated systems in the core
laboratory facility.
Workload
The workload generated within the hospital increased by
6% levels overall, with the main increase in Histopathology
resulting form the designation of the hospital as a cancer
centre. Work from GPs was down by 3% on 2009 levels. The
total number of specimen requests received was just over
2.1 million, accounting for 6.8 million reportable tests results.
St. James’s Hospital contribution to the workload is 65%
and GPs is 26%, the remainder coming from other hospitals
around the country as well as in Dublin. The 2010–workload
fi gures, based on laboratory requests, are outlined in Table 1.
LabMed Directorate Requests 2010
Department
2009 Accum.
Total
2010 Accum.
Total
% Incr/decr
10/09
Haematology 528, 031 563,788 7
Coagulation 180,118 195,427 8
Bl. Transfusion 32, 647 33,020 1
Biochemistry 734, 715 705,565 -4*
Microbiology 350, 282 367,910 5
Histo - blocks 78,940 87,229 11
Cytology 4,513 5,652 25
Immunology 134, 574 155,247 15
Cmd 4,438 4,883 10
Totals per hospital 2,048,258 2,118,721 3.4
* Biochemistry workload appears reduced due the consolidation of tests into requests as part of its
modernisation programme. However in terms of tests carried out there is in fact a 15% increase.
This increase is not refl ected in the above workload measurement system for biochemistry.
The measurement system will revert to tests carried out in 2011.
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