Histology gets a makeover
The practice of studying tissue samples for signs of disease using a microscope in a laboratory setting has been radically changed in the biggest overhaul to histology services in LNWH for several decades.
New technology means tissue slides can now be scanned giving histologists greater flexibility over where and how they analyse tissue samples as well as reducing the need to outsource much of the service which has cut costs by more than half-a-million pounds a year.
This, in turn, has helped the trust attract more staff in a specialism where only 3% of histology departments in the UK are fully staffed.
The histology team examines around 200,000 slides a year and plans to be able to scan all of them by the end of this year.
David Stokes, Pathology General Manager at LNWH Trust, said: “The benefits are a faster more responsive service for patients, reduction in cost and greater convenience for staff in terms of workflow and where and how they work.
“In future, we will be able to obtain specialist second opinions for complex cases immediately by sharing images instead of the traditional method of having to study glass slides in person.
“The latter is important because there is a relatively small pool of histologists in the UK so anything we can do to make working here more appealing is a huge plus.
"An in-house digital pathology system like this also greatly reduces the possibility of slides being damaged in transit or misidentification.”