Impact of Automation Process on Microbiological Laboratory Efficiency

Abstract Background University Medical Center (UMC) Lubbock made a significant investment to improve the quality and efficiency of the microbiology laboratory by implementing the Becton Dickinson (BD) Kiestra Total Laboratory Automation (TLA) system which automates sample setup, incubation and reading. Automation minimizes hands-on steps, increasing efficiency, productivity and quality; impacting the rapid identification of pathogens. This system went live in May, 2015. Methods After approval from the Quality Improvement Review Board, a retrospective analysis of electronically captured microbiological data from a BD research database was used to compare pre-installation (January-December 2013) vs. post-installation period (January-October 2016). Twelve common and clinically important organisms were assessed. The following reporting times were compared: First gram stain, Organism Identification (ID), First antimicrobial susceptibility (AST), and final AST. Reporting time was examined in a 24-hour spectrum divided into day (06:00–17:59) and night (18:00–05:59) shifts. Statistical analysis was performed with SAS software version 9.2. Data was analyzed using Chi-squared test. A p value of