As clinical labs across Asia Pacific seek greater operational effectiveness, many are implementing continuous improvement programmes and monitoring new KPIs every year. To manage these efforts, more than two-thirds of labs in the region have a dedicated continuous improvement team, according to the latest results from the Asia Pacific Laboratory Benchmarking Survey, an annual survey by Roche Diagnostics.

Continuous Improvement and Lean Management

The survey results demonstrate the large and growing popularity of continuous improvement programmes in Asia Pacific. As shown in the chart below, more than half of all labs in the region engage in continuous training for employees, customer satisfaction surveys, complaint feedback systems, employee performance management and accreditation.

Only a third of labs in Asia Pacific today use Lean Six Sigma, but interest is growing quickly, as evidenced by the relatively high share of labs that plan to implement this programme in the next 12 months. Lab Insights has reported extensively on the rise of lean management methodologies in the Asia Pacific region. Recent case studies that were featured on our platform include the following:

• Using Lean Six Sigma to Improve Lab Efficiency at a Guangdong Hospital (contributed by Xianzhang Huang, Director of the Laboratory Department at Guangdong Provincial Hospital of Chinese Medicine in China)
• Lean Management Lessons from a Thai Hospital (contributed by Cherdchai Nopmaneejumruslers, Assistant Director at Sriraj Hospital in Thailand)
• Implementing Lean Six Sigma in a Taiwanese Lab (contributed by Fang-Yeh Chu, Director of the Department of Clinical Pathology and QMC at Far Eastern Memorial Hospital in Taiwan)

These case studies show that lean management is a proven, effective and inexpensive way to improve reduce waste and improve lab workflows. The concept was initially developed in Japan, but ironically, only 3% of Japanese labs in the survey said they were using or planning to use lean methodologies. Uptake has been much higher in other countries like Thailand, where 93% of labs employ lean management methodologies.

Aside from Lean Six Sigma, many labs across the Asia Pacific region are also turning to local and international accreditation programs to demonstrate quality (see Clinical Lab Accreditation and External Quality Control in Asia Pacific – 2020 Data Update for more details).

Turnaround Time (TAT) and Other KPIs

Alongside continuous improvement programs, many clinical labs in the Asia Pacific region are monitoring new KPIs to improve performance. The most common KPIs include turnaround time (TAT), external quality control (EQC) performance and cost reduction.

TAT is by far the most common KPI that clinical labs use to measure their performance. As with lean management, Lab Insights has published many case studies about how clinical labs in Asia Pacific are working to improve their TAT, including the following:

• Reducing TAT in Blood Sampling: Lessons from Hamamatsu University School of Medicine (contributed by Masato Maekawa, Professor in the Department of Laboratory Medicine and Director of the Clinical Laboratory at Hamamatsu University School of Medicine in Japan)
• How to Shave 30 Minutes off Turnaround Time (contributed by Grace Frelita Indradjaja, Managing Director of Siloam Hospitals Group in Indonesia)
• Use Technology to Decrease Turnaround Time (contributed by Andri Hidayat, Operation and Information Technology Director at Prodia Clinical Laboratory in Indonesia)

In the coming weeks, Lab Insights will feature further analysis of key trends in Asia’s clinical laboratory space, including deeper data on how clinical labs in the Asia Pacific region are monitoring TAT, as well as average TAT targets for clinical chemistry, immunology and a range of specific assays, including arterial blood gas, cardiac markers, liver function and renal function tests.

To stay on top of these trends, please register for an account on Lab Insights and subscribe to our Roche Diagnostics Asia Pacific LinkedIn channel for updates. And if you have any specific questions about what these trends mean for your lab, contact Wesley Wong ([email protected]) for more information.