I am the new technical Laboratory Manager for our three-clinic operation in the Puget-sound region surrounding Seattle, WA.  I have found it necessary to call upon several technical support people, including Gerard Desir who was extremely helpful, having been on-site from implementation.

When a random tech support person answered my call about two weeks ago regarding a mildly complex issue, I expected a to be told that it was too complex an issue, but this young man hit a dead-end, immediately resolved and re-routed his thinking and would not stop his quest until he had resolved my question, all in a timely manner.  I was impressed.

The following week, it came to our attention that there was an extremely complex formula necessary to calculate free Testosterone.  When I called, I was again connected with Cham Estrada who carefully listened to our dilemma, asked only relevant and appropriate questions and agreed to return my call when he had the information necessary.  Before our expectation, Mr. Estrada was back, requesting further clarification for this complex task which I would characterize as almost ‘Einsteinian’ in proportion.

Mr. Estrada apparently consulted with the software coding team several times, took the lead to report progress in this complex task, and then on Friday, 3-14-08, he amazed our technical team with a finished, tested, and appropriate group of calculations that he expertly – by remote connection – inserted and then patiently waited as we performed a test-run of the three necessary data points through the algorithm.  It was correct from the first insertion into our software as proven by our multiple testing, over about 5-10 minutes while Mr. Estrada patiently waited, encouraged us with his good humor and ultimately, with no apparent smugness, simply asked a humble question: “Is there anything else that I can help you with today?”.

Needless to say, Mr. Estrada is an outstanding customer and technical oriented person who is focused and goal-oriented.  I do not wish to eclipse the software coding team that Mr. Estrada enlisted to achieve our goal, nor Mr. Desir, who has patiently answered many questions that must have seemed redundant to him, though coming from a newer Lab staff at Longevity Medical Clinic PLLC, Lynnwood, Kirkland & Tacoma, WA. But Mr. Estrada is clearly an exceptional asset to Antek Healthware.

Thank You, and I can only hope to work with people close to the caliber of Chem Estrada in future dealings with LabDAQ (Antek), it has been an unexpected pleasure.

-Steve M. Shepard, Technical Laboratory Manager, Longevity Medical Clinic, Lynnwood, WA

When we made the decision to purchase our LIS, we did the usual and shopped around. One vendor never contacted me after my inquiry.  One vendor contacted me nearly EVERYDAY! Then there was LabDAQ, they answered me promptly, gave me a quote and sent out a demo disk. This was the easiest decision I have ever made.

Our next step was the installation. In our busy office I was very concerned about the down time we were going to experience from our old system to the new one. The Software Application Engineer, was great!  Instead of us having to work around him, he worked around us. It was truly a trouble free crossover. His technical expertise was amazing, he solved problems before we ever knew they existed.

We have had our system almost two years now. It truly is very user friendly. It far exceeds all of the needs of our laboratory. On the rare occasion we have had to contact service, they connect via the internet and solved our problems quickly.

-Wendy Whatley, Tyler Hemotology Oncology, Tyler, TX

In 1994 I started looking for a Laboratory Information System (LIS). This was quite an undertaking for me as I had never used an LIS and had just a rudimentary understanding of word processing. I knew that computers  could do anything, so I had some pretty lofty ideas of what I wanted the system to do. We in the medical field speak in a different language. Well, so do computer people. It took a lot of explaining on Antek’s part to get me to understand what they needed from me and what I needed from Antek.

We had three clinic locations in Eau Claire, WI and a 4th location in Rice Lake, about 60 miles away. Because our patients at times were seen at more than one location, one of my lofty ideas was to interface all 4 locations so that lab results would be available to the doctor at any location. Now remember, this was 1994 (just yesterday to me – but in the computer world it was last century). Andy Pollack, the owner of the company worked very hard to make this happen. It wasn’t real time, but we were able to download each night to a server. See how many computer words I have learned!

When it came time for the installation, everything went very well. Andy and one other person did the installation. I’m sure as the company has grown, he doesn’t do installations any more. The original idea was to use the manual method and the LabDAQ system side by side for a week to make sure everything was working right. The training was so good and the LabDAQ system so easy to learn that by noon of the first day, my staff said, “Forget the manual system, let’s just use LabDAQ.”
As a person with very limited computer knowledge, the continued support I got from Antek was great. The response time was very good and the people were great to work with. The neatest thing was that when you did have a problem, the Antek staff could just take over your computer and resolve the issue. Back then it was DOS so I watched them type in a bunch of gobbley gook @#&%(@*ect#** that would scroll across my monitor.

After 4 years the clinic was bought out by a larger clinic and we changed to their computer system. Twelve years later, I had the opportunity to set up a clinic office lab for seven Internal Medicine doctors and two cardiologists. I knew right where I was going when it came time to look at an LIS. I contacted George Carr at Antek. Since the lab didn’t exist yet and I was working full time at another job, George and I exchanged a lot of phone calls and emails. A lot of the calls were, “Now George, explain that to me again”.

During the last two weeks of September of 2006, I had the installation of 4 major laboratory instruments and then the LabDAQ system. Needless to say, my mind was a little on the over stimulated side. Again the installation and training went well. During the first week of being live, there were many calls to technical service asking, “Now how do I do that again?” The greatest thing still is that they can take over my computer and help me. Since LabDAQ is now Windows based, I can watch the arrow fly around my screen and learn from it.

My reason for choosing LabDAQ the second time was because of the excellent support I received from Antek.

-Ann Buenzli, Eau Claire Medical Clinic, Eau Claire, WI

As laboratory manager, I asked some of our techs to comment about why they like LabDAQ. Here is what they said:  It’s VERY USER FRIENDLY compared to other systems I’ve used. For example, it provides multiple ways of looking up a patient within the system. You can look up the patient by entering a few letters of their last name, by their ID number or by the patient accession number. You can edit patient and test information all from the same screen. Test processing and accepting tests from interfaced analyzers is also very user friendly.  When a patient’s result is in question, you can review previous patient results (graphed) prior to accepting the current result from the processing screen.  You can also put the results on hold and choose to process at a different time.”

The LabDAQ system also allows you to accept multiple tests and indicate a different user for each test that was ran – all from the same screen.  Result reporting to various locations is very easy. It can all be done from the patient requisition screen. I just click on reports – I can choose to print, fax or send copies. I can print out as many copies as I want – for nursing, Drs., etc. I can also fax to as many Drs. as needed all from one screen. It’s just so versatile.

Looking up Doctors is so easy. You can look them up by their number or a few letters of their name and hit fetch.  Customer service is excellent – competent people at tech support and short response time if a problem should develop. We have had so very few over the past 12 years we’ve been with LabDAQ. We love it!

-Sandy Hanson, Laboratory Manager, Ortonville Hospital Area Health Services, Ortonville, MN

Rocky Mountain Diabetes and Osteoporosis Center (RMDC) is a small clinic serving the needs of diabetics and thyroid cancer patients in Idaho Falls, Idaho and the surrounding area with 3 physicians and 1 physician assistant. The practice started over 20 years ago and had a small onetechnologist laboratory. Since that time, we have built a state-of-the-art, fully accredited laboratory performing nearly 650,000 tests per year. We have four full-time registered technologists with over 70 years combined experience and a support staff of phlebotomists, administrative assistants, and couriers and a business and marketing manager. The doctors made the decision to use the excess capacity to start a regional reference lab, called Express Lab, to better serve this community, as well as eastern Idaho and western Wyoming.

Our small but mighty lab has a provider database of over 1100 doctors, clinics, PAs and NPs from several states from Hawaii to Florida. A mere 1 1/2 hours from Yellowstone Park, Craters of the Moon, and Jackson Hole, Wyoming, the area is a destination spot for many Sunbirds who seek relief from the hot Arizona summers in the cool Idaho mountains as well as multitudes of tourists just passing through. We offer a“Continuous Health Fair” with direct access testing, perfect for getting
that protime done while on vacation, or hepatitis and HIV testing for nursing school.

When I came on board 2 1/2 years ago, LabDAQ2 was already in place and I was impressed with how easy it was to learn and use all the features. We have since upgraded to LabDAQ3 and I am thrilled with the new abilities we have to track QC by numbers and graphs and have recently added delta checks for patient test results. One of the great features is the ability to graph previous results when following diabetics, transplant patients, and therapeutic drug values. My personal favorite is the lookup capability for macros, making it pain-free to add standard notes to reports.

Because we have remote site clients, the ability for them to order their own tests and generate labels saves us time and ensures greater accuracy in labeling of specimens and decreases turn-around time. It also allows us to check the pending report throughout the day to see what tests arebeing ordered so controls can be run and ready when we receive the specimen. We can also customize panels for individual doctors or groups and reports are automatically faxed to them when completed.

The interface with our reference lab allows us to enter new tests easily, track unreported and pending results, add frequently ordered tests to the favorites list for ease of use by our clients, and inactivate send-out tests when we bring them in-house. The added feature of checking diagnosis codes against test orders and automatically generating an Advanced Beneficiary Notice (ABN) is most helpful to the nursing staff and off-site clients.

The wide variety of management reports available allows us to enumerate patient results and do cost analysis by date, provider, location, and insurance types.

Antek has provided us with excellent support from sales to technical engineering help with the ability to remote access our system to trouble-shoot problems. They don’t even laugh at us when we make common errors, well not much anyway. They sent an engineer for 2 weeks when we upgraded, who was more than willing to build new formulas, set up superpanels, educate everyone and answer all our questions. With this help we have been able to focus on analyzing and adding new assays, and providing excellent patient care, which in the end, is what we are all about.

-Sandy Studley MT, Lab Manager, (ASCP), CLS (NCA), Express Labs, Idaho Falls, Idaho

I was first introduced to LabDAQ 13 years ago, while working for a consulting group in Massachusetts. As a Medical Technologist, I have found that consulting to physician office labs and others can be a very exciting and challenging career. As president of my own consulting company, I offer various services to my laboratory clients, including technical consulting, management and process improvement.

Today’s laboratories have to run smarter, more effectively and more efficiently than ever before, while being accurate and precise. I’ve continually turned to Antek HealthWare’s LabDAQ LIS (Laboratory Information System) as a key component for success. Using LabDAQ helps to ensure compliance to CLIA regulations, but also allows the lab to manage many processes at one time.

As an LIS is considered, either for a new laboratory or laboratory currently in operation, my first question is “How is this all going to work?” Then I start planning with the client to select the appropriate equipment, aid in the hiring of laboratory personnel and design the laboratory for efficiency.

As I design the layout of the laboratory for maximum workflow, I must consider the location of computer terminals.  The last piece of the puzzle is the Laboratory Information System. The questions keep coming; How many terminals will be needed? Where will the specimens be entered and processed? Are we going to interface electronically with the reference lab? Are we going to interface to an EMR (Electronic Medical Record)?  Asking these basic questions initially will aid in the overall implementation of an LIS in the laboratory.

With these questions in mind, the providers, administrators and laboratory personnel all have a sense of how the process will work. These questions may seem basic, but one of the most common mistakes laboratories can make is to not ask these questions and not get what they really need out of their LIS.

Every laboratory is unique, with different needs and expectations, but every laboratory needs to run efficiently. It is essential for the laboratory to think of the end product. With this in mind, LabDAQ has been an instrumental tool for streamlining data, performing multiple functions simultaneously and continuing to increase throughput. I continue to recommend LabDAQ because it’s a great value, easy to use, offers multiple reporting functions, quality control statistics and the ability to interface with key reference laboratories and EMRs.

LabDAQ continues to strive for excellence in customer service by offering upgrades to their software on a regular basis. These upgrades are made possible by surveying current LabDAQ users to find out what additions to the software would be important to them. Because LabDAQ continues to invest resources into new areas such as their DAQbilling Practice Management System, customers feel that they have purchased a product that will grow with their laboratory and not be out-grown.
Established in 2000, Quality Systems and Compliance offers consulting services to the clinical diagnostic laboratory and medical device manufacturers. Our success has been derived from key relationships within the clinical diagnostic community, offering the best practices, reducing costs, streamlining processes and continually finding ways to improve quality.

-Deborah Sumner, President, Quality Systems and Compliance, Beverly, MA

I was not actually looking for Antek when I found them.  I had been given the task of bringing up a new startup physician office laboratory from scratch. This lab was to provide laboratory service for 44 physicians that work in Dayton, OH and surrounding areas.  In my prior life, I had worked as an LIS Analyst and had directed four laboratories for a large hospital network in town, so I knew the importance of getting a good LIS system.

I had looked at three small physician office lab systems and one large expensive system when a LabDAQ disk was given to me by our Accounting Manager. He had attended a trade show in Columbus, OH and had stopped by an Antek booth represented by George Carr [Antek’s Area Sales Manager for the Great Lakes region]. Our accountant had been carrying the disk around in his car for two weeks after the show and had just remembered that he had it. That is how I found out about LabDAQ.

I decided to look at the disk. What harm would it do? Another lack luster system. So, I put in the disk, looked at the program and printed out a report. It was love at first site! I immediately called George Carr to schedule an appointment. He returned my call rather quickly and came to Dayton to give me a presentation. After I saw the system, I had George put on a demo for our COO, Lab Director and other managers here. I knew this was exactly what I was looking for.

The sales process went very smoothly. George understood what we were looking for and our price range. All the areas we were interested in were addressed with the associated costs clearly outlined on the price quote. After the purchase was made, I was given a contact to work with to begin gathering our information to build the system. That was Mary Ann Hoffman. She would fax or send e-mail information to me. If I had questions, I would call or e-mail her. She would address all my concerns and or put me in contact with other sources within the company. Antek also worked with Sonny Felts, our IT person and Kenn Cobb our LIS/QC person to get their side set up.

We were working by a timeline to have everything completed before Antek came on site to get our lab set up and the software installed. This meant building a lab from start to finish. While we were working on the lab, Antek was working to build the tests in the system that we would be using.
Ed Nesbitt arrived on site to set up the system with Steward, his supervisor. The look on Ed’s face was priceless because we were still building the lab when he arrived, so he thought we would not be ready for him. All of the Antek engineers, both on site and from Technical Support, have been great to work with.

The system is very easy to use and has great looking patient reports.  Our physicians are quite pleased with how our LIS is working. We feel that Antek and LabDAQ was the clearly the right choice for Providence Medical Group.

-Krucita Ceasar, Lab Manager, Provident Medical Group, Dayton, Ohio

Ten years ago when I first envisioned RSS Laboratory’s operations, I felt I had all the ingredients necessary to operate a successful regional clinical laboratory in South Florida. What I have found over the past ten years is the key ingredients to success have essentially remained the same; but with the proper catalyst you can increase the rate, as well as the return on success you try to achieve.

As president and CEO of RSS Laboratories Inc., now considered one of the largest regional laboratories in Florida, I have found Antek HealthWare to be that catalyst. I was first introduced to Antek while working as a laboratory consultant in an aggressive and competitive market.
Within a few years I had assisted in the development and growth of over fifty physician offices and independent laboratories. In time, I realized a consultant’s value diminishes over time with each successful venture. Using the network of physicians I had created while working as a consultant, I opened RSS Laboratories Inc. in 1996.

Knowing full well, that in order to be successful in the clinical laboratory business, the fundamental ingredients are accuracy, precision, and reproducibility. With this notion in mind I began to select instrumentation for the laboratory that would provide these fundamental ingredients at costs that were within RSS’s budget.

The clinical laboratory business in South Florida is an aggressive marketplace. So what was RSS Laboratories Inc. going to do different than their competitors? I wanted to market RSS as the laboratory that offered “added value services” in addition the services considered standard for the industry. What I had discovered was the Laboratory Information System (LIS) may very well be the most important capital investment made by a successful clinical laboratory.

Most Laboratory Information Systems I had evaluated were quite expensive and far exceeded the budget I had established to open RSS Laboratories Inc. I decided to place a call to Antek HealthWare to inquire about their LIS product. I had soon discovered that Antek’s LabDAQ system was able to perform all the functions necessary for RSS Laboratories to offer the “added value services” I had desired. Additionally, Antek’s product pricing was only a fraction of the cost of its competitors.
With Antek’s LabDAQ system in place, RSS was able to perform customer service functions far superior to other local and regional laboratories and enabled us to offer a competitive product to the larger national laboratories being utilized by physicians in the area. In addition to the Quality Assurance and Quality Control programs available through the LabDAQ system, services such as remote site printing, cumulative reporting, epidemiology reporting and specimen tracking are only few tools the LabDAQ system enabled RSS Laboratories to offer.  Antek has written numerous programs specific to RSS’s needs. Antek has allowed RSS to offer customized reporting for each physician, and secured internet web-site result reporting. RSS Laboratories also utilizes Antek’s DAQbilling program to bill clients, patients, and all third party insurance providers. Antek has clearly streamlined our operations, while containing our costs.  We all know full well how rapidly the medical industry is changing in today’s society. The providers who can adapt quickly to the changing needs of the medical community are the providers who will enjoy the most success. RSS’s mission statement states: “We demonstrate a sense of urgency on any matter related to our patients and their physicians.

We strive to make ourselves easy to do business with. We believe that customer satisfaction is essential to our ongoing success.” There is no doubt that Antek was the catalyst that helped RSS Laboratories achieve the success it enjoys today.

Established in 1996, RSS Laboratories Inc. (Rapid Scientific Services) has enjoyed success in the very competitive clinical laboratory marketplace. Located in Delray Beach Florida, RSS services over 150 physicians throughout five South Florida Counties. RSS Laboratories performs over 4,000 laboratory tests daily. Using multiple draw site locations and a diligent courier team RSS offers 24-hour turnaround time for most routine testing. RSS’s laboratory operations are overseen and administered by a group of dedicated laboratory professionals, who work diligently to assure the highest quality laboratory services, using only the latest methods and technologies available today.

-Kent McNeal, President and CEO, RSS Laboratories, Inc., Delray Beach, Florida

“We had our version 3 system [LabDAQ3] installed in September 2003. Your staff has been extremely patient throughout our laboratory’s learning curve. No matter who has taken my call, I have been treated to a courteous, pleasant, and extremely skilled LabDAQ staff member. They really do know how customer service works. Your staff is the absolute best support group, of any kind or company that I have had the pleasure of encountering in my 24 years of laboratory work. Thank you and your software for making my life easier.”

-Cathy Chapin, Laboratory Manager, Valley Internal Medicine, Inc.

“In 1995 when I decided to computerize our lab, I liked the Antek Product [LabDAQ] but was skeptical because their only systems at that time were on the East Coast. I took a leap of faith, purchased LabDAQ, and have never regretted this decision. Tech support is wonderful, the software is specifically designed for a laboratory setting, and learning the software is easy.”

-Deb Feldman, Laboratory Manager, York Medical Clinic, York, Nebraska

“We installed LabDAQ in May of 2002 and have since added the auto fax program, a reference lab interface, and a charge entry interface to our billing system. These programs have played a very important role in allowing us to increase our revenues significantly and dramatically decrease write-offs due to bad claims! The quality of service to our patients has improved substantially as testified by a committee representing our seventy-five physician practice.

Antek’s customer service is superior and their technical expertise is vast! We couldn’t be happier that we chose LabDAQ as our LIS.”

-Douglas A. Dyer (ASCP), Laboratory Manager, Grove Hill Medical Center, New Britain, CT

LabDAQ an Integral Part of J2′s Success
headquartered in Tucson , J2 Laboratories is Southern Arizona ‘s fastest-growing toxicology and clinical testing facility. Since first opening its doors in 1999, J2 along with Antek’s LabDAQ laboratory information software has experienced impressive growth and resounding successes all the while meeting the diverse drug testing needs of its statewide and regional markets.

With seven employees in 1999, J2 could boast of only a single toxicology instrument and a handful of computers. At the time, J2 selected LabDAQ2 for interfacing software, because it was both easy to learn and operate. But, being one of Antek’s premier drug testing laboratory sites was not without its share of unique and interesting challenges. Shortly after opening, we discovered that the existing billing report did not fit our needs. In less than two days, Antek crafted a software solution in the form of a Drug Invoice. Problem solved! LabDAQ’s customizable report and invoicing features continue to impress us today.

As the Director of J2′s Laboratory Information System, I am always able to rely on Antek’s knowledgeable staff to provide any necessary technical support and a quick response.

Our payroll roster now includes over 70 employees in seven locations throughout Southern Arizona . We maintain four instruments requiring a LabDAQ interface. In addition to performing drug testing, we also provide clinical testing as well as metal and oral fluid testing services for drugs. The change from just a toxicology laboratory to a full service laboratory has been an exciting one for us all. Furthermore, our considerable growth has positioned J2 for the next level of service- and continued success!

Most recently, we executed a system-wide upgrade to LabDAQ3. The changes and improvements in our processing, receiving and testing departments, as well as our client services department, are significant. Increased security within LabDAQ, plus improved event modifications within the test building, has made LabDAQ a more flexible and secure system. The decision to upgrade to LabDAQ3 came at an important time for J2 Laboratories. Our need to remain versatile and efficient while facing a steadily increasing volume in testing made this upgrade a smart decision for us.

Looking ahead, our next goal with LabDAQ is to connect J2 satellite offices with the main laboratory. This will allow our remote sites to order a test as soon as a specimen is collected, thus increasing overall efficiency by enabling the main location to review and prepare for each specimen prior to its arrival.

On behalf of everyone here at J2 Laboratories, I would like to thank the entire staff and technical support crew at Antek for their invaluable assistance throughout the past five years. May our relationship continue for many years to come!

-Hal Elzweig, LIS Director, J2 Laboratories, Inc.