Innovative technology
The in vitro diagnostic area of the healthcare sector receives only about 1 to 2% of the total funding for healthcare. Yet, it has a disproportionately high impact on patient well being and the effectiveness of the professionals in the hospital. By using the Olympus solutions, such as the AU5400 chemistry analysers, Olympus reagents and pre-analytical sorting and archiving robots OLA2500, the KIMCL achieves a high throughput with fast and accurate diagnosis. The Olympus analysers are able to carry out around 5 million sample analyses per year. They are also very accurate and can determine about 100 parameters in patient samples, including blood, urine and even the cerebral spinal fluid. A couple of microliters of a patient sample are enough to provide all the required diagnostic information. The Olympus analysers and robots are linked to the novel laboratory information system MOLIS (from Sysmex). This ensures all instruments and devices are connected in a network and the generated patient information is stored and channeled to the correct recipient.
Impact on diagnotics
The ways in which the laboratory helps patients are multifaceted. By finding out the levels of various analytes in a patient’s sample, including enzymes, specific proteins, ions, metabolites and drugs, the laboratory can provide invaluable information on the patient’s health. For example, it is able to provide the biggest clue to determine or confirm the presence of a disease, whether it be liver disease, various forms of cancer, coronary diseases or even malnutrition.
Regular laboratory diagnostics is also vital for treatments with antibiotics, antidepressants or cancer therapies. For example, many therapeutic drugs must be monitored
regularly by analysing patient samples to ensure their efficacy and make sure that toxic side-effects are prevented.
Impact on preventive medicine
Another major application area of the laboratory’s analysis systems is in preventive medicine. Here, samples are tested to determine the functionality of the major organ
systems. The information provided can offer early indications on whether a health condition has arisen which requires cautionary measures. This helps individuals maintain a healthy lifestyle. With the installation of Olympus OLA2500 systems, the laboratory’s next expansion step is already underway. These systems automate labour-intensive tasks for the preanalytical
handling of patient samples, including sample identification, decapping, sorting and archive preparation. As the full service provider at the AKH, Olympus helps ensure patients receive the best laboratory services, as would be expected of Europe’s largest hospital.
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