Vanderbilt University Medical Center’s Core Clinical Chemistry Laboratory recently celebrated the launch of its faster, higher-volume automated chemistry line.
The next generation “Alinity” system made by Abbott Laboratories will enable VUMC’s lab to essentially double the number of routine but essential measurements of electrolyte, protein and enzyme levels in patient blood samples that can be performed each day, said Eric Stanford, MHA, MLS, manager of the Core Laboratory.
The goal of the multi-year, multi-million-dollar upgrade was to increase patient testing, capacity and volume, “allowing us to grow along with VUMC as we care for more and more patients every day,” said Joe Wiencek, PhD, medical director of the Core Clinical Chemistry Lab and assistant professor in the Department of Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology.
“We anticipate that with the increased capacity and greater speed we will be able to turn around test results more quickly,” added Adam Seegmiller, MD, PhD, professor of Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology and executive medical director of the Pathology and Laboratory Medicine Clinical Service Center.
“It will give us the capacity to add additional tests to the chemistry line that we weren’t able to do before,” Seegmiller said.
“This really is a big step forward to meet the demands of a growing Vanderbilt clinical enterprise.”
