The pace of innovation in medical science is accelerating but are the labs ready to keep up with the rapid transformation? Perhaps no! The need of the hour is digitally empowering the labs and using state of the art research to make them globally connected powerhouses capable of breakthrough innovation at scale.

An Accenture study – Digital Transformation in the Lab revealed how life sciences companies are applying digital to research and development or quality control labs. According to the study, 60% companies are deploying digital as – 37% are piloting, 13% are scaling up and 10% already have digital technologies in widespread use.

Effectiveness of Future Labs

The modern lab will dramatically transform how tests are conducted and biopharma products are created. With a broad focus on validation, knowledge management, new assay development, contract research, new technology evaluation and R&D services in the field of Genomics and Proteomics, these labs will bring latest innovations, advanced concepts and technologies for the benefit of clinicians and patients. In R&D, it will make previously inaccessible, miniaturised and complex assays routine and fully automated. Further, quality control wise, the use of extended reality (XR) will become commonplace to ensure tech transfer, train and provide technical support on new methods.

Future Labs are Inevitable Necessity

Lab transformation is inevitable if we envision creating digital diagnostic network enabling the connected world and empowering global health through impactful innovations.

As technology continues to revolutionise how we live and how we work, there is an escalating need to provide a modern, quality driven digital approach to laboratory operations that offer consumers unprecedented convenience, impactful innovations and reliability. The future is at home diagnostics which would allow phlebotomists to conduct testing and deliver results instantly. The purpose is to enable a new generation of medicine where the operations can extend into peoples’ homes and the diagnostic continuum can empower a truly connected, accessible and omnipresent vision of health.

We shall foresee state-of-the-art, harmonized system for clinical diagnostics that facilitates testing ability for immunoassay, serology, clinical chemistry, point of care, clinical microbiology, clinical microscopy, haematology, cytopathology, transfusion and molecular diagnostics. A series of advancements are poised to change the industry’s testing paradigm through speed, quality, efficiency, and scalability to help guide care for patients. Healthcare system is increasingly recognizing the added value the laboratories can play in becoming more of a clinical decision engine, helping patients perform tests at home, and physicians interpret results and diagnose and monitor patients accurately and faster.

Continuous Developments

Innovative technologies have not only made POCT devices portable but also have improved specimen collection techniques so that they minimally interfere. The relatively user-friendly nature of this technology is due in large part to the advances in disposable test cartridges and microprocessor-based analyzers. Home testing is another growing segment which is redefining laboratories. It is decentralised where test results are mostly provided manually by patients or entered into shared data-monitoring systems. These home testing kits are relatively inexpensive and over-the-counter diagnostic.

It can be said that future labs are all set to enable patients to take a more active role in their own care by integrating at home instant testing into their medical regime. It will not be surprising to welcome a time when patients will be able to add important information to their medical records through digitally linked hand-held devices designed for home use. The future labs will give tough competition to sophisticated hospital and independent laboratories, especially in light of the growing number of endemics and complex tests.

Clinical labs are in the midst of a technological revolution that is focused on increased efficiency, improved quality and reduction in errors in the delivery of health care services. Automation of many laboratory services will result in major shifts in laboratory staffing needs. Demand for experts to monitor and service robotic equipment, skilled IT professionals and allied health professionals is likely to grow.

Healthtech Start-ups

There is an ever increasing need for quality and affordable healthcare in India and the rapidly growing healthcare market is creating huge opportunities for healthtech companies and start-ups. As a result, there are larger trends emerging in preventive healthcare, pathology, analytics, testing facility, emergency services, among other things. From providing instant support from doctors through the phone to integrating AI in healthcare and developing low cost personalised healthcare, healthtech start-ups are doing wonders.

Summing It All Up

The path towards transforming diagnostic laboratory tests in this new era must include strategies to deliver fast and quality tests, enable home tests, as well as, reduce the current unnecessary and non-contributory testing. These advancements will allow us to build strategies in disease prevention and early diagnosis. The goal is to achieve progress in optimizing the health of the population in a sustainable and cost-effective manner.