Thomson Hospital Kota Damansara clinches Allied Health Initiative of the Year - Malaysia at Healthcare Asia Awards

Its GLP Total Automation Laboratory System helped the hospital increase productivity, accuracy, and versatility in its processes.

Thomson Hospital Kota Damansara (THKD) took home the Allied Health Initiative of the Year - Malaysia at the Healthcare Asia Awards for being the first private hospital in Malaysia to implement the Abbott GLP Total Automation Laboratory System.

THKD collaborated with Abbott to introduce the GLP Total Automation system and Alinity ci series analysers in its laboratory, in recognition of the need to keep up with the rapid pace of developments in the architecture of laboratory automation systems.

The GLP system is a modular, single-tube transport and storage system that features a smart “CAR” to transport individual blood samples. Since its implementation, the hospital has recorded an increase in productivity, accuracy, and versatility.

The GLP system allows the team from THKD to optimise laboratory workflow by minimising manual steps. The self-driving CAR is highly intelligent and robotically controlled at various speeds. Inevitably, manual error sources are significantly lowered because of reduced staff intervention. This is different from the traditional way of requiring manual intervention in different analytical phases of samples arriving in the laboratories.

Moreover, this unique open system allows the hospital to easily modify the CAR tracks to maximise floor space whilst transforming the laboratory from 2D to 3D. The flexibility in modelling allowed THKD to utilise less than double the original space in square meters but triple the throughput of processing samples when integrated with the Alinity ci analysers.

The solution also shortens turnaround time even during peak operations. It also archives, stores, retrieves, and disposes of samples automatically, reducing manual steps that are typically labour-intensive.

“We are proud that Thomson Hospital Kota Damansara has in place the technology, processes, and people to maximise uptime, optimise workflow and decrease turnaround time, hence improving patient and clinician experience whilst driving operational excellence,” said Ts. Dr James Chong Teck Hong, Director of Allied Health of THKD.

The Healthcare Asia Awards aims to honour hospitals, clinics and other healthcare providers that have risen above the challenges and made a remarkable impact by innovating and reinventing initiatives to better serve patients and protect employees.