HNL Lab s digital pathology platform enables faster results and more

HNL Lab Medicine is the laboratory partner affiliated with Lehigh Valley Health Network, part of Jefferson Health, which includes 14 hospital campuses and 981 licensed acute beds across its flagship campuses. Since digitizing its anatomic pathology practice, HNL has enabled remote case review and seamless case sharing across its large network.

THE CHALLENGE

Before adopting the digital pathology platform, the lab's primary challenge was managing an increasingly complex workflow across an expanding network.

"Our pathologists were distributed across multiple hospitals, some separated by up to 50 miles, making the manual exchange of cases for second opinions both cumbersome and inefficient," said Dr. Sajjad Malik, director of digital pathology at HNL Lab Medicine. "Oftentimes, it took an entire workday just to transport a single case for review, delaying turnaround time. In turn, patients had to wait longer to receive their diagnosis and begin treatment.

"Additionally, rising case volumes, coupled with a national pathologist shortage that hindered recruitment, significantly impacted our team's morale," he continued. "Burnout wasn't just a possibility, it was an inevitability. These factors made it very difficult for our pathologists to achieve the work-life balance they desired."

PROPOSAL

Staff proposed implementing a digital pathology platform would immediately optimize turnaround times by eliminating the need to physically transport glass slides across the network.

Furthermore, this platform would facilitate instant, efficient intradepartmental consultations by providing seamless, simultaneous access to cases. This would ensure patients get the most accurate diagnoses, as staff are able to share cases with appropriate experts in their disciplines.

"Beyond operational efficiency, we thought this technology would offer significant strategic advantages," Malik explained. "We thought we would be able to have remote work capabilities, enhancing staff flexibility and morale, while allowing us to securely outsource overflow work to affiliates to balance workloads.

"Finally, adopting this technology would position us as leaders in the field, and we would eventually have AI-driven diagnostics, which will significantly improve department morale and strengthen our recruitment efforts for top talent," he added.

MEETING THE CHALLENGE

After deciding to go digital, HNL Lab Medicine expedited the conversion of its surgical pathology practice, implementing six Leica GT450 scanners and Proscia's Concentriq platform with great success, Malik said.

"The transition was smooth, thanks to the reliability of the Leica scanners and the user-friendly nature of Proscia's software, which our team embraced immediately," he noted. "The histology staff found the Leica scanners easy to use and Concentriq to be intuitive, and the Proscia team has been collaborative.

"Within 12 months, all 25 of our pathologists were fully operational on the new digital system," he continued. "Key immediate benefits included instantaneous case sharing across our network and enhanced, digital-forward multidisciplinary tumor boards. Furthermore, the system provided an unexpected advantage to our molecular department, which now prefers digital annotation for tumor retrieval over traditional manual methods."

RESULTS

Within six months of transitioning to a fully digital workflow, HNL Lab's surgical pathology practice successfully implemented a remote work program.

"This transition has profoundly impacted our department, with most pathologists now working from home two to three days a week," Malik reported. "This flexibility has substantially boosted morale. Additionally, we recruited a dedicated remote dermatopathologist to support our team amid a rising caseload. A recent internal poll revealed that 81% of our pathologists prefer the digital platform over conventional microscopy.

"Operationally, our turnaround time for cases requiring ancillary molecular testing has improved by at least one business day, getting results faster to patients and their treating physicians," he continued. "While comprehensive data for all surgical pathology cases is still pending, the ease of case sharing suggests an overall improvement in efficiency."

Furthermore, the organization is in the final validation phase of implementing its first AI algorithm, Ibex Prostate, for prostate pathology. Staff anticipate this will enhance interpretation efficiency and serve as a robust quality assurance tool.

"With clear challenges and a compelling system in hand, the remaining question was execution," he concluded. "We were confident in the technology's potential, and we are now demonstrating that in practice."

Follow Bill's health IT coverage on LinkedIn: Bill SiwickiEmail him: [email protected]Healthcare IT News is a HIMSS Media publication.

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