FFlex eSuite™ LIS » Functionality

FFlex eSuite is a comprehensive LIS system with complete functionality to meet the workflow, data management and reporting needs of today’s clinical lab. The following are just a few of the basic operational modules that come standard with your FFlex eSuite system:

Patient Demographics

Search for your patient in the system by typing the first letter(s) of the patient’s name, the Medical Record Number (MRN), visit number or accession number, and conducting a search the system helps you reduce the likelihood of duplicate entries. If a match shows up as a search result, you can modify billing and demographic information, place orders or print labels. If there is no match in your search, you are prompted to a new patient.

Order Entry

Our streamlined order entry screen allows you to simply navigate through the section tabs and, as shown in the screen, simply point and click on the desired tests from the pick list of available tests. New orders may be entered manually from any lab workstation, sent automatically from a host or other third-party system, or physicians can enter orders from a remote PC by logging in via the Internet. In all cases, sample tube labels can be automatically generated. You have the option to add medical necessity checking and patient-specific ABN generation to your custom built FFlex eSuite LIS.

Specimen Labeling and Tracking

Once you place orders, the system can generate bar-coded labels at any defined location. FFlex eSuite is designed to default to the label printer nearest the user workstation where the request was made, but can be printed to any label printer location in the network. These labels can be designed according to your specification or follow many standard formats. If specimen collection occurs at a remote draw station or satellite facility, FFlex eSuite offers a series of checks to ensure that the time, date and receiving technologist are logged and the sample is correctly processed upon receipt into the main lab. You have the option to add our comprehensive sample tracking module to you custom built FFlex eSuite LIS

Results Entry

While most result data is automatically processed and sent to the system from interfaced laboratory instruments, results also can be entered manually into the system. From a user workstation, you can enter data in batches based on a worklist or for individual patient results. Since both methods are subject to human error, several rules-based quality checks are in place to prevent inaccurate entries. These include delta checks, technical flags and critical value flags.

Quality Control

Quality Control (QC) is an essential tool for managing analytic processes. Assuring test result accuracy depends on the validity and adherence to defined QC rules and techniques. The FFlex eSuite™ QC module is intuitive, easy-to-use and comes standard with each installation. Your lab is able to process both alpha results and numeric data, which are evaluated using any of the user-defined and selected rules, including Westgard rules. Data may be entered manually or captured online from interfaced instruments and can be easily reviewed and accepted. Reports can show tabular data, Levy-Jennings plots or both for any user-definable period and data is stored online indefinitely.

Result Verification

Result verification is another quality check performed by the system. Once results are automatically or manually entered into the system, they are held until they can be reviewed, verified and released by the laboratory technologist. Once verified, the results are available for reporting. Depending on the test and result, the verification feature can execute rule-based logic for reflexive test ordering or auto-verification.

Patient Inquiry

With FFlex eSuite™, today’s health care professional has the ability to instantly consult the lab for verified results in real time over the Internet.

Our Patient Inquiry module allows you to easily search for the patient and accession results you wish to view. Result information is organized by test and department, and laboratory results are highlighted to show whether they lie in the normal, abnormal or panic range. Any comments or interpretive reports are also displayed in Patient Inquiry. Reports can be formatted based on facility or physician preferences and generated on any printer on the network.All communication is encrypted, access is password protected, and each physician is limited to view only his/her patient data.

Cumulative Trend Reports

It can be helpful to show laboratory trends over time when analyzing patient data or tracking a patient’s condition. Another feature of FFlex eSuite™ is cumulative trend reporting which allows health care professionals to view past values. Users with access to patient results can view up to the last eight patient results at one time on the Cumulative Trend Screen. This is organized by department and uses the same color highlighting and mnemonic flags to identify the results that violate abnormal, panic and other rules.

Management Reporting

The laboratory manager can produce an extensive list of prepared reports and graphic plots, as well as produce customized reports using an SQL-compliant report-formatting tool. Standard management reports include, but not limited to:

• Daily log
• Pending work
• Panic results
• Abnormal results
• Work pending
• Revenue reports
• Audit logs

These reports can be used to assess the overall laboratory operation, workflow, department workload and productivity, and assist in planning.