From John Sinard and colleagues: Pathologists as Stewards of Laboratory Information

Walter H. Henricks, Myra L. Wilkerson, William J. Castellani, Mark S. Whitsitt, and John H. Sinard (2015) Pathologists as Stewards of Laboratory Information. Archives of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine: March 2015, Vol. 139, No. 3, pp. 332-337.

SPECIAL SECTION—EMPOWERING PATHOLOGY IN THE ERA OF THE ELECTRONIC HEALTH RECORD

Pathologists as Stewards of Laboratory Information

Walter H. Henricks, MD; Myra L. Wilkerson, MD; William J. Castellani, MD; Mark S. Whitsitt, PhD; John H. Sinard, MD, PhD

From the Center for Pathology Informatics, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Cleveland, Ohio (Dr Henricks);

the Division of Laboratory Medicine, Geisinger Medical Laboratories, Danville, Pennsylvania (Dr Wilkerson);

the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, Hershey, Pennsylvania (Dr Castellani);

the Diagnostic Intelligence and Health Information Technology Committee, College of American Pathologists, Northfield, Illinois (Dr Whitsitt);

and the Informatics Program, Department of Pathology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut (Dr Sinard).

Just as electronic health records are transforming the practice of medicine and health care information management, practicing in the era of the electronic health record offers opportunities, if not imperatives, for pathologists to take on new and “transformative” professional and leadership roles for the organizations they serve. Experience indicates that clinicians will perceive pathologists and laboratories as responsible for all aspects of laboratory testing and information management, including order entry and results reporting, even though such functions may fall beyond the control of the laboratory. As described and expanded upon in the previous 4 articles of this series, the use of electronic health records dictates changes in how clinicians interact with laboratory information. In this environment, pathologists are uniquely positioned to act as the stewards for laboratory information in electronic health records and throughout health care organizations.