DI Digest – Q1 2023

More than 30 years ago, Data Innovations recognized how labs needed a way to connect and manage all of their instruments through a single platform. “We saw that the industry needed a patient-driven, vendor-neutral lab enablement solution that would act as a unifier in the lab,” says DI President Premila Peters.  

Don Jarvis, Chief Architect of DI, recalls working directly with lab professionals in DI’s early days to develop that new technology. What started as DI’s flagship product Instrument Manager™ (IM) eventually grew into a full suite of lab enablement solutions that support lab productivity, accuracy, compliance, and, ultimately, quality patient care.  

Today, DI continues to introduce creative approaches to enabling clinical labs to work smarter. “I think innovation means different things to different people,” says Jarvis. “To me, innovation means trying something new, doing something different, staying on top of new technology, venturing out into areas we haven’t thought of before.” 

This year, DI will introduce new innovations that prioritize key concerns of today’s enterprise laboratory: maximizing productivity and lab uptime while maintaining network security. 

NEW ENHANCEMENTS TO INSTRUMENT MANAGER 

Central to a new generation of DI innovations will be a modernized platform for Instrument Manager. Jarvis explains: “A lot of the architecture and framework we’re working on will not only offer a new, user-friendly interface, it’s also setting the stage for us to innovate quicker.”   

A strong focus on cybersecurity is also an integral part of these software enhancements. Brian Biermann, Director of Product Management, explains: “Cybersecurity is at the forefront of what we’re doing, as we modernize the product and innovate where we can to ensure we’re reducing risks for the customer.” 

To achieve the maximum network security and eliminate potential cybersecurity vulnerabilities, laboratories will need to make sure they are running the latest IM software. The most recent update, IM version 8.17.32, includes some important security enhancements. To view other important new features offered in this latest version, visit the Instrument Manager Version Calculator web page. Select your current version of IM to view a list of features you will gain by upgrading to version 8.17.32.  

OPTIMIZING LAB UPTIME WITH LAB GPS 

DI’s mission has always been to empower labs to optimize patient care. With more than 300 years of collective lab expertise among its team members, DI has understood how to make labs function better in support of that mission better than anyone else.  

“Historically, we’ve had a very strong background in clinical lab expertise,” says Biermann. “How I see us evolving is gaining depth in technology and advancing how technology is utilized in the lab.” 

A key example of DI moving lab technology forward is our Lab GPS product, currently available in the U.S. Designed to reduce the burden of IT staff overseeing network connectivity in the lab, Lab GPS offers a single platform for monitoring and restarting all instrument and LIS connections routed through Instrument Manager.  

Because network issues account for the majority of daily lab interruptions, Lab GPS offers IT and LIS managers a helpful tool for maximizing lab uptime and productivity. With large enterprise labs running hundreds of instruments at multiple sites, a single view for monitoring the status of all connections simultaneously offers improved network management and time-saving convenience.   

“Lab GPS is our first cloud-hosted and SaaS offering,” Biermann explains. “The goal behind Lab GPS is to maintain the lab’s connections and to maximize lab uptime. Currently, today, if a connection is lost and needs to be restarted, that typically requires someone to create a ticket and notify IT, who then needs to log into a VPN and restart the connection. In version 2 of Lab GPS, currently in beta, customers will be able to restart their connections remotely via web browser.”  

DI is currently seeking customers to beta-test version 2.1 of Lab GPS. If you would like to be an important part of improving Lab GPS, email northamerica-sales@datainnovations.com about becoming a beta customer. 

INVESTING IN INNOVATION  

As healthcare organizations continue to wrestle with staffing shortages, increased demand and growing security threats, Data Innovations will continue to be the partner of choice for healthcare organizations wanting to optimize their laboratories for excellence in patient care. 

Ethan Roberts, Vice President of Engineering & Technology, explains how DI has positioned itself for ongoing innovation: “DI is a growing company, and we have invested in key talent, both in clinical expertise from the lab industry and in cybersecurity and cloud expertise from the technology sector. With this powerful talent combination, we have a deep understanding of the practical concerns lab managers and administrators have for running highly effective labs. That understanding, coupled with our knowledge of the newest best in breed IT and cybersecurity practices, gives us an edge in offering secure and user-friendly solutions that allow labs to operate at peak performance.” 

Is your lab achieving new levels of performance through DI technology? If so, we’d love to spotlight your efforts for some well-deserved recognition. Get in touch with us by emailing marketing@datainnovations.com.