Anatomic pathology labs today face critical shortages in technicians, along with increasing demands to produce better quality results, faster.
Patient safety is a priority in anatomic pathology laboratories worldwide; still, a great deal remains to be done. In the United States, eight percent of tissue slides are cross-contaminated in the traditional H&E staining process and more than one in 1000 are misidentified due to human error.*,**
When real patient results are at risk, even a small margin of error is unacceptable. Now, more than ever, we must safeguard every patient...every step of the way.
In this repository of information, you will learn about pathology lab process errors that compromise the integrity of patient results, and the solutions that can put your lab on a safer path.
Tissue cross contamination in the diagnostic tissue specimen preparation process can lead to misdiagnosis for patients. Hear the story of one man who questioned a diagnosis that just didn't make sense based on his symptoms- and avoided unnecessary treatment.
Ventana Medical Systems Inc. supports patient safety improvements in the pathology lab in many ways.
We invite you and your lab to learn more about these efforts and join us in the quest for safer lab practices.
* Mislabeling of cases, specimens, blocks, and slides, Nakhleh et al, Arch Pathol Lab Med, Vol 135, August 2011
** Tissue floaters and contaminants in the histology laboratory, Platt et al, Arch Pathol Lab Med, Vol 133, June 2009
