CyberLAB Saves Grenada Lake Medical Center $688,000

Challenge

Grenada Lake Medical Center (GLMC) was looking to transition from annual processes to an automated laboratory information system (LIS). GLMC also wanted a system that would seamlessly integrate with the new radiology information system that the organization expected to purchase in the coming year.

Solution

GLMC discovered Aspyra, LLC, which provided not only an LIS with the functionality that the organization needed, but also offered a radiology information system that seamlessly integrated with the LIS and shared a single interface with the hospital information system.

Results

In the laboratory department alone, Aspyra's CyberLAB® LIS enabled GLMC to reduce its salary and benefits costs by $688,000. Additional costs have been reduced with GLMC's laboratory and radiology departments sharing hardware and administrative resources.

GLMC is a 156-bed hospital that began searching for a LIS to increase efficiency by eliminating the laboratory department's need to manually input orders and document results. “Aspyra's CyberLAB system had the functionality that our laboratory department needed to automate our manual processes and improve our test turnaround time,” said Lisa Powell, laboratory systems manager for GLMC. “But what put Aspyra head and shoulders above the competition was the company's ability to deliver an integrated suite of applications for the laboratory and radiology departments.”

“The other factors that made us select Aspyra were the company's good references from its customers, especially in the areas of installation and ongoing support,” said Miles Jeffery, GLMC's laboratory director.

GLMC went live on CyberLAB in July 1999, and a CyberRAD® go-live later that same year. The laboratory department began realizing benefits soon after installation. “Our test turnaround time improved dramatically because the information flow was better, and we no longer had to manually enter orders and document results,” Powell said.

“With our laboratory now processing more than 200,000 billable tests per year, we need every tool that we can get to maximize our efficiency,” he added. “CyberLAB helps us get test results back to the floor quicker, which is an important part of improving patient care. In addition, CyberLAB includes the reporting capabilities we need to measure efficiency, such as test turnaround time, so we know exactly how the laboratory is performing.”

The increased efficiency has enabled GLMC to handle the departure of staff members within the laboratory department, while still maintaining its testing volume. “In 2003, we had a higher-than-normal turnover in our department with eight people leaving,” Jeffery said. “The turnover had a limited affect on our department because our efficiency levels had increased with CyberLAB, and we decided not to replace the positions that the eight others had vacated. That saved our organization $688,000 in salary and benefit costs in 2003, all while our testing volume remained the same.”

One component that helped boost GLMC's efficiency is WebGateway™, Aspyra's Web-based module that provides secure access to laboratory results from remote locations via the Internet. GLMC physicians use WebGateway to check results from their offices and when they're at home or on call.

“WebGateway has significantly reduced the number of calls that our laboratory receives for results and has been a factor in our department producing the same volume of work with fewer people,” Powell said. “WebGateway also has been an important tool in our efforts to secure more business with outside physician practices that contract with GLMC for laboratory services. They like the quick access to results.”