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29 July 2020

Supporting critical laboratory systems: 5 tips for effective ICT triage

Felice Di Rienzo

Vice president, healthcare services, UK and Ireland

Effectively triaging ICT issues as soon as they arise is crucial for fixing them says Felice Di Rienzo, Services Director at CliniSys. The triage process involves critically analysing a pathology system to identify the component in the puzzle that’s failing. The quicker this can happen, the faster it can be resolved.

It’s about applying the right expertise at the right time, Di Rienzo believes. Here he provides five tips to improve your ICT triage in the unlikely event that problems arise.

Mission-critical systems

Modern pathology laboratories rely heavily on their IT systems, with the performance of the lab intrinsically linked to a network of independent and interlinked systems, processes and technologies.

Pathology LIMS systems are a central part of a complex web of connections. Reassuringly, LIMS systems are remarkably robust and system failures are incredibly rare.

However, sometimes issues can develop elsewhere within a system that cause outages. A breakdown between the LIMS, PAS, EPRs and lab machinery, for example, can be catastrophic to productivity and disastrous to patients.

ICT triage is a rapid, methodical and meticulous process to assess an issue and analyse its root causes. If you become aware of a problem with your ICT system, the sooner you can identify its cause (or potential cause) you can act.

Here are five tips to help you get it right.

1. Collect an effective minimum data set (MDS)

Information is power when it comes to ICT. Creating a robust minimum data set and a clear description of the problem and your views on its cause can give providers and partners a head start on fixing your problems.

As a LIMS system software provider, these insights can help us to focus our efforts on the right areas. If you alert us to an issue but don’t provide sufficient supporting information, we’re fumbling around in the dark.

While experience can help us to diagnose issues rapidly, any additional information and insight you can provide can speed up this process.

2. Check any environmental issues which can impact ICT systems

There are always local environmental issues that can affect the performance of software, such as network outages. Before contacting your suppliers, conduct a series of simple checks to see whether the problem is local.

As a good starter, checking whether emails or internet access are working will tell you if there’s a network outage, for example.

3. Know your ICT platform and the suppliers who provide each part

Pathology laboratories use a mixture of software, systems and products sourced from a plethora of suppliers. By understanding who provides and supports each part of the system, you can get through to the right person quickly if you diagnose a fault.

At CliniSys, for example, we regularly receive calls from laboratories who are experiencing technical issues with hardware, that we can’t solve because it is supported and maintained by another party. This frustrates the customer and slows down the resolution process.

4. Don’t be a victim of circumstance

Laboratories can sometimes be victims of circumstance, with substantial changes to their environment, systems and supplies often conducted by external agencies and local ICT teams without their knowledge.

New workstations, operating system patches and network infrastructure changes can all disrupt a previously stable system, so ensure you’re on top of updates and changes. If you are aware that your ICT provider is due to carry out any routine maintenance or fixes, ensure everyone in the laboratory is aware.

5. Understand integration

Integration is undoubtedly one of the most complex areas of ICT support, with pathology lab systems involving multiple systems, suppliers and components. Issues with integration are the most frequent, and often more complex to identify and fix – because each problem can include numerous organisations, systems and teams.

It’s crucial that you understand and map the interactions within your laboratory. No external supplier, even one as embedded in your organisation as a LIMS system provider, can ever have the insight that you do.

Developing a systematic understanding of your system and the way it joins together will enable you to conduct rapid fault finding and analysis.

Knowledge is power

When it comes to tackling ICT issues, knowledge is power. If you are a CliniSys customer, our knowledge base is packed full of useful information and advice that could help you tackle your ICT issues.

If you need to contact someone about a CliniSys product, use our dedicated UK customer service portals.