CGM SCHUYLAB improves patient care in low- and middle-income countries
A global leader in e-health technology, CompuGroup Medical (CGM) worked this summer with Timorese scientists and Australia’s Menzies School of Health Research to improve patient care and streamline the diagnostic laboratory process in the newly independent nation of Timor-Leste.
With no laboratory information system, or LIS, diagnostic requests at the Laboratório Nacional de Saúde and the Hospital Nacional Guido Valadares were managed manually and on paper, and getting results back to clinicians was sometimes challenging.
Backed by a grant under The Fleming Fund—a UK aid program supporting countries across Africa and Asia in the fight against antimicrobial resistance—the Menzies School of Health Research implemented the CGM SCHUYLAB Laboratory Information System to assist the Timorese Ministry of Health in the development of an advanced reference laboratory for diagnostics of COVID-19 and antibiotic-resistant infections.
“Antimicrobial resistance is the next pandemic after COVID,” said Dr. Ian Marr, an infectious disease physician and microbiologist with Menzies School of Health Research, from his office in Canberra, Australia. “It’s expected to take millions and millions of lives.”
To improve the health system in Timor-Leste, finding the right lab management software was key.
After nearly four months of searching, “I was pretty depressed thinking this might not be possible, but then I came across CGM SCHUYLAB,” Dr. Marr said.
Building on decades of development and laboratory experience, the team behind the CGM SCHUYLAB Laboratory Information System had already established interfaces to the instruments being used in Timor-Leste. Affordable and light on server requirements, CGM SCHUYLAB proved to be the best option to modernize the clinical laboratories there.
In addition, the CGM SCHUYNET web portal greatly improved patient and provider access to results. With its mobile-friendly accessibility, CGM SCHUYNET transformed the way results were delivered in Timor-Leste. More immediate access to results meant quicker diagnoses and faster treatments.
“Doctors are getting results on their phones,” Dr. Marr said. “It just saves lives.”
In the fight against COVID-19 and antimicrobial resistance, CGM SCHUYLAB and CGM SCHUYNET have delivered meaningful results. After just four months of use, providers had already accessed more than 44,000 lab reports.
“As a global leader in Health IT, we at CompuGroup Medical are pleased to see the impact that our systems have in different communities around the world,” said Chief Executive Officer Derek Pickell, CompuGroup Medical US. “We know affordable technology can make a real difference and are delighted to be partnered on such a vital project with the stakeholders in Timor-Leste.”
According to Carl Smith, general manager of the lab division at CompuGroup Medical, “CGM SCHUYLAB has really opened the door for us to support the international lab community. We recognize the critical role our laboratories play in healthcare worldwide, and that impact is magnified when we focus on the needs of low- and middle-income countries such as Timor-Leste.”
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