| Abstract: | Process management and workflow optimisation have become key issues of good laboratory management and now seem to be predominant over traditional challenges such as the quality of analytical testing. The first author of this paper has conducted several workflow optimisation studies for clinical laboratories in Europe (Universities of Zurich and Amsterdam, Manchester Royal Infirmary and others) and in the US (University of Virginia), using a laboratory-specific simulation software called Simlab™ for realistic computer modeling of laboratory scenarios. Since data input and calibration of the models against reality have always been a challenge in these studies, we looked into possibilities of using automated data extraction to extract as much information as possible from the laboratory information system. In this paper we describe our first experience with a Microsoft Excel™-based software program called Simlab 1, which uses the ASCII file transfer protocol to extract data from the LIS. |
