A lab tech works at Red Deer Regional Hospital Centre. (Alberta Precision Laboratories/Alberta Health Services)

By Josh Hall (Twitter: @Vancan19)

$5 million in savings annually

Roche, Alberta Precision Labs, AHS team up to improve diagnostic services

Mar 3, 2022 | 3:46 PM

Red Deer is included in a series of major improvements to integrated lab services.

Alberta Precision Laboratories and Roche Diagnostics announced Thursday they’ve joined forces with Alberta Health Services to ensure more accurate diagnoses and save more time through provincial integration and standardization of lab equipment.

Work has been completed at four sites, including Red Deer Regional Hospital Centre, Lethbridge, Grande Prairie and Calgary South Health Campus, with work to be done at 16 sites in total by this summer.

Improvements mean the following:

• New integrated core lab equipment will enhance quality and consistency of patients’ lab tests across Alberta.
• Standardization of routine lab testing allows staff to focus on more important tasks and will save millions of dollars per year.
• Roche’s cobas® pro integrated solutions and cobas® 8000 modular analyzers will be used to process 80% of routine lab work in the province.
• 16 regional and centralized lab sites across the province will use Roche’s instruments, assays and digital solutions.
• Through Roche’s solutions and standardized equipment, Alberta Precision Laboratories will provide crucial insights for improved patient care.
• Roche’s advanced diagnostics and aggregated healthcare data will support clinicians across Alberta in making the right diagnosis at the right time.

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12 remaining sites:
-Diagnostic & Scientific Center
-Foothills Hospital
-Alberta Children’s Hospital
-Peter Lougheed Hospital
-Rockyview Hospital
-Medicine Hat Hospital
-Royal Alexandra Hospital
-Cross Cancer Hospital
-University of Alberta Hospital
-Misericordia Hospital
-Grey Nuns Hospital
-Sturgeon Hospital

“Partnering with Roche Diagnostics is another example of how Alberta’s integrated lab system is providing higher quality and a more consistent and efficient laboratory service across the province,” says Dr. Verna Yiu, president and CEO, Alberta Health Services. “APL continues to show strong leadership when it comes to finding innovative approaches to enhance the level of care for all Albertans, while ensuring our healthcare dollars are spent as effectively as possible.”

Noted in a release, the partnership here is a result of a competitive RFP process, with about 70 per cent of clinical decision-making in Alberta taking patient diagnostics into account.

Roche says the enhancements can help reduce hospitalizations, enable targeted treatment options, and improve chronic patient management.

“Roche’s state-of-the-art solutions are part of our vision for an improved and sustainable healthcare system that will bring value to patients, physicians and laboratories by improving medical decision-making and increasing efficiency,” says Tammy Hofer, Chief Operating Officer of Alberta Precision Laboratories.

“Centralized processing and testing of routine lab tests will ensure that patients across Alberta will have their lab work completed on the latest technology, providing high-quality healthcare across the province regardless of where they live. As the first in Canada to standardize provincial lab equipment, we want Albertans to feel proud of their health care system as we hope to inspire other provinces across Canada to follow the same approach.”

Lab services impacted in Red Deer are offered at Red Deer Regional Hospital Centre, and at 5002 55 Street.

The new partnership is expected to generate savings of approximately $5 million annually.