Departments — Purpose, scope, and best practices
Adding Departments helps organize your laboratory’s catalog and operations by grouping tests, instruments, and activities into logical areas (e.g., Chemistry, Hematology, Microbiology). In this LIS, the Departments form is informational only—it does not, by itself, drive routing, permissions, or billing logic. However, consistent use improves clarity, reporting, and day‑to‑day management.
What Departments are useful for
- Catalog organization: Tag tests and instruments to a department for easy browsing and maintenance.
- Reporting and analytics: Filter dashboards, TAT, QC summaries, and productivity reports by department.
- Communication: Display department names on worklists, labels, and internal reports for quick orientation.
- Governance and audits: Provide a clear ownership model (who manages what) for regulatory reviews and quality meetings.
- Cross‑functional coordination: Aligns with physical spaces or specialties (e.g., Toxicology vs. Molecular).
Recommended fields to capture
- Department name and short code (e.g., “Chemistry” / “CHEM”)
- Description and scope (what tests/sections it covers)
- Manager/lead and contact info
- Location/site (if multi‑site lab)
- Operating hours and on‑call notes
- Optional: Cost center/GL code, CLIA specialty/subspecialty, accreditations, instruments covered
Note: These fields are for documentation and reporting context. Operational behavior (routing, access control, billing) should be configured in the appropriate LIS modules.
Best practices
- Use a standard naming convention and unique short codes (max 4–6 chars).
- Keep the list concise and stable; avoid overlapping definitions (e.g., choose “Hematology” vs. “CBC Team,” not both).
- Map each test to one primary department; use “Sections” or tags for finer granularity (e.g., Coag within Hematology) if your LIS supports them.
- Align with your org chart and regulatory specialties to simplify audits.
- Review annually to reflect service changes, mergers, or new modalities.
Common department examples
- Specimen Processing/Accessioning
- Chemistry; Immunochemistry
- Hematology; Coagulation
- Urinalysis
- Microbiology; Virology; Mycology; Parasitology
- Molecular Diagnostics; Genetics
- Toxicology (Presumptive/Definitive)
- Anatomic Pathology: Histology, Cytology
- Send‑outs/Reference Testing
- Blood Bank/Transfusion Services (if applicable)
What Departments do not do (in this LIS)
- Do not change order routing or reflex logic
- Do not control user permissions
- Do not affect billing, CPT mapping, or payer rules
If you need operational effects (e.g., route tests to benches, assign queues, or restrict access), configure those in the dedicated routing, workload, or security settings and simply use Departments as the organizing label referenced by those rules.