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| * Name of facility and titles are from the time of visit. |
Contents
I. Preface
In 1897, Iwate Medical University Hospital was established as Iwate Hospital
by Shunjiro Mita. Since then, it has gone through post war revolution in
medical education and formulation of Medical Practitioners Law and became
Iwate Medical University in 1951. As the only medical education organization
in Iwate prefecture, since 1956 they have contributed in community medicine
by establishing a dental college hospital and an affiliated Hanamaki onsen
hospital, expanding their facilities and operations and are continuing
to grow as an integrated medical and dental university.
 <Iwate University Hospital>
Address: 19-1 Uchimaru, Morioka-shi, Iwate-ken
Japan, 020-8505
TEL: 019-651-5111 (main number)
Website: http://www.iwate-med.ac.jp/
No. of Dept.: 30
No. of Beds: 1,048
No. of Staff: 1,474
II. Striving to become a desired laboratory
Department director Suwabe:
Including the dental department, our hospital has 1,087 beds and we receive 1,600 outpatients a day. Because we receive so many samples, it used to take us over an hour to complete analyses; from the time the sample was set to the time measurement completed. But because there were demands from patients and clinical side for quicker test result reports as rapid testing results meant shorter hospitalization for patients, we leveled off sample collection and got rid of peak times and have been working on providing accurate reports quickly.
Another problem was that because our laboratory was reconstructed from
patients' rooms, there was no large area available which caused various
sections of the laboratory to be divided up.
That is why last year for our LAS renewal, we wanted to focus on a system
that would enable 24 hour continuous operation, rapid test reporting and
minimized space occupied by the system, which led to our decision on implementing
the compact one-line transportation system, Open LA21 module system.
III. LAS (Open LA21 Module System)
 Sample loading / Unloading and sorting
 The sample loading module set in front of sample reception made the flow
of sample loading very smooth. Also, the unloaded mother samples are sorted
and kept in 50 position racks which simplified operations.
Pre-processing
 First test tube caps (seal stopper) are removed by the de-cap module. As
this used to be manually handled by technologists, we improved the efficiency
of this operation by installing the de-cap module. Next, the aliquot module
prepares daughter samples for online/ offline analyzers. Barcode labels
are applied automatically when daughter samples are prepared for offline
analyzers.
EA07U/ 504X
 EA07U measures Na, K, and Cl of serum and urine, and 504X measures urine items.
With 504X, only an optimal proportional amount of sample and reagent are used for measurement because even when dilution ratio is set by test item, it does not lower the throughput. Before renewing LAS, sample amount was decreased for measurement in order to ensure its range and reruns for samples with high values were manually done.
JCA-BM2250LA
 3 units of biochemistry modules, JCA-BM2250LA (JEOL), are installed. With
a total maximum of 7,400 tests/h throughput and half the consumption of
reagents than the conventional amount used, we selected this unit to cutback
on cost. The height of this analyzer enabled all technologists to have
a visually open view of the laboratory which improved our working environment.
IV.Actual improvements made by LAS implementation
Department director Suwabe:
Renewing LAS has brought us various advantageous effects. First of all,
test results are reported within an hour where before the system was renewed
TAT* took over an hour. It has also saved us space by occupying only half
of the space the old system took up and allowed us to bring laboratory
operations from other locations together. By placing the analyzers and
workers all together in one area, technologists are able to go out to the
hospital wards and answer patients' questions as received as well as improving
communication with doctors and nurses.
* TAT (Turnaround Time): the time from sample arrives to the laboratory to when test results are reported
V. LIS - Laboratory Information System
Department director Suwabe:
At our laboratory, with CLINILAN GL as our backbone system we handle 900 samples on peak days of the week. Data from an analyzer group with the construction that could minimize TAT are verified from various angles and efficiently utilized. In the hematological testing division, microscopic images taken from the CCD camera are imported into the testing system and the graphics are used in reports.
VI. Management of an open-door laboratory
Department director Suwabe:
At our laboratory, we promote open-door laboratory as being part of the medical team instead of just conducting daily operations. For example, we began offering laboratory tours for patients who get comprehensive medical examination. By actually seeing the analyzers, their interest towards testing and understanding towards our profession has increased. Also, by improving the efficiency in conducting daily work, we have freed time where we hold study sessions with doctors and nurses on a regular basis. As a result, problems that occur on site which relate to testing have become clear and have helped improve daily operations. We will continue to strive to become an ideal laboratory for those inside and outside of the hospital keeping it the open-door laboratory by discussing and handling requests and questions raised.
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| Dept. Director Suwabe |
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Panel introducing the lab. next to sample receiving |
Special thanks to Dept. Director Suwabe and the staff of Iwate Medical
University Hospital.
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