Consider the importance of specimen identification solutions in pathology digitization
Digital pathology helps pathologists view, manage, share, and analyze tissue samples by converting glass slides into digital slides. Therefore, you need a high-speed, high-resolution slide scanner and an accurate barcode, which provides patient information – or, at least, the patient ID – throughout the entire process (from receiving the original specimen to digitizing the tissue section for diagnosis under a virtual microscope).
Prevent misidentification
Indeed, one of the main goals of digitizing the entire process is to prevent misidentification, and to make connecting, reviewing, and managing patient data faster and more reliable. In the past, most labeling was accomplished by handwriting information with a pencil or marking pen. However, handwriting tends to be difficult to read, may be inaccurate, and can rub off during processing. Even if the sample is not to be scanned and digitized, a barcode – which can only be produced digitally – is a necessity for matching it to other samples and data in the laboratory information system (LIS). Fortunately, today’s printing inks are chemical and UV-resistant enough to withstand common laboratory processes. With the right solution, labs can print not only 2D barcodes, but also text, graphics, and logos to scan and apply directly to tissue cassettes and slides. Such an approach completely eliminates both handwriting and expensive, difficult-to-apply xylene-resistant labels – two things that decrease workflow efficiency and place patient safety at risk.
There are two types of printing systems most laboratories use nowadays: cassette printers and slide printers. Cassette printers are available as standalone manual printers or as complete automated systems. The standalone options, such as the Signature Cassette Printer, are compact, robust, and small enough to fit next to a grossing station. They usually load one tissue cassette at a time through an operator. These modern manual printers can produce several cassettes per minute. Fully automated systems function at nearly the same speed, but use separate hoppers instead of requiring manual input. Some models even come with a robotic arm that picks each cassette from the top of the desired stack and places it into the printer. Exactly like that is the SCP-R version of the Signature Cassette Printer. It’s a completely automated system consisting of the Signature Cassette Printer and a new upgraded robotic picking system called Autoloader EVO.
Slide printers
Slide printers, like the Signature Slide Printer EVO, are designed for efficient, hands-free operation. Because slides are stored in easy-to-load cartridges that protect them from dust and other potential contaminants, they increase workflow safety and slide longevity. The devices can also print in a variety of hues and shades, reducing the need to purchase consumables in different colors. State-of-the-art systems are advanced enough to offer on- demand or batch mode printing and are also designed for very low noise emission.
Placing a cassette printer at a grossing station or a slide printer at a microtome station is an important step toward significantly increasing the lab’s efficiency while reducing the risk of specimen misidentification. Even after several years, cassettes and slides with properly printed labels can be reliably identified. By printing on tissue cassettes and slides, we digitize the entire process chain, which not only facilitates LIS integration but also (when using the right printer) prepares the laboratory for a future in which the entire pathology work-flow is digital.
DTM Medical at Medlab 2023
DTM Medical will showcase the Signature Series at Medlab 2023 at stand Z6.F33 in Za’abeel Hall 6 and is well represented in the Middle East through its network of experienced local distribution partners in the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman, Kuwait and Bahrain.
DTM Medical
Mainzer Str. 131
65187 Wiesbaden, Germany
Phone: +49 611 92777-0
Email: info@dtm-medical.eu
Website: dtm-medical.eu
