Barco delivers Coronis 6MP Diagnostic Displays for Labmedicin Skåne digital pathology project
Lund, Sweden, 6 October 2011 – Healthcare visualization pioneer Barco will deliver Coronis Fusion 6MP DL display systems for digital pathology diagnosis to Labmedicin Skåne, the laboratory organization under supervision of the Skåne Regional Council (Sweden). Labmedicin Skåne has selected the screens to form a vital part of their brand new digital pathology system to be installed in laboratories located in Helsingborg, Kristianstad, Lund, and Malmö. The choice of the calibrated Barco solution confirms the need for slide-to-eye consistency in digital pathology diagnosis.
Pathology laboratories are just starting to make the innovational shift towards digital diagnostics, replacing glass microscope slides with digital images. Labmedicin Skåne – one of the largest healthcare laboratories in northern Europe – selected Barco as the supplier for the visualization element in its digital pathology systems. Four regional hospital pathology labs (in Helsingborg, Kristianstad, Lund and Malmö) will be linked up in the system, thereby enabling shared digital pathology services, and a better quality of care.Image quality and consistency
Barco will deliver 25 of its Coronis Fusion 6MP DL display systems. This ingenious diagnostic display system includes a number of features that offer added value to pathologists, ensuring ultimate slide-to-eye consistency.
First of all, the Coronis Fusion 6MP DL was developed to guarantee outstanding image quality for diagnostic purposes. The very fine pixels, the high image contrast and the perfect viewing angle combine to offer pathologists images which are on par with a microscope. Secondly, Barco's built-in I-Guard calibration technology and diagnostic-grade backlight guarantee an image quality that stays consistent over time, without any intervention from the pathologist. Barco backs this up with a 5-year image quality warranty. In this way, the pathologist can focus his efforts on his diagnosis, without worrying about image quality. Finally, Coronis Fusion 6MP DL uses Barco's industry-leading MediCal QAWeb software to ensure networked and centralized Quality Assurance. The software finds all the displays in the system-wide Labmedicin Skåne network and makes sure they all display the images exactly in the same way, over and over again. It is a rock-solid quality guarantee for uniformly displayed, remote pathology.
Supporting patient safety
The Barco screens are part of an integrated digital pathology system. Digital Scanners by Aperio are integrated with the Sapphire C5 laboratory information system of Software Point, a laboratory information systems vendor.
By replacing glass slides with digital images coming from the four laboratories, these can be transferred to a central databank. Pathologists are thus ensured a permanent and easily accessible digitized slide image for all of their cases, which can be consulted on all the Labmedicin Skåne sites, and even abroad. Labmedicin Skåne can now significantly improve the diagnostic process and reduce turnaround time for interpretations, resulting in improved quality and patient safety. Installation is due to start in Fall 2011, with plans to be fully operational by Spring 2012. The integrated system is estimated to produce 500,000 digital slides annually.
Dr. Jens Enoksson, Chief of Medical Staff at the Department of Pathology, Lund, University and Regional Laboratories: “Even though this project implies a radical change, our visualization needs are as strong as ever. Spurred by the good experiences of our radiology colleagues – they have been using the Coronis Fusion 6MP DL for some time now – ¬we also approached Barco for our own project. They were able to meet our exacting demands: optimal contrast, high brightness and calibrated color adjustment.”
Stephane Willaert, Director Strategic Marketing for Barco: “Replacing a microscope is not an easy thing to do. When Labmedicin Skåne decided to install digital pathology across their region, they understood the importance of every element in the visual chain, from the scanner all the way to the display in front of the pathologist. We are proud that they selected Barco to provide a high-quality and standardized viewing environment for their pathologists.”
About Labmedicin Skåne
Labmedicin Skåne ('University and Regional Laboratories, Region Skåne') is part of the Skåne regional healthcare organization and is responsible for management, therapy, guidance, prevention and research within the following areas: Occupational and Environmental medicine, Biobanking, Clinical genetics, Clinical immunology and transfusion medicine, Clinical chemistry, Clinical microbiology, Clinical pathology and Hygiene in Care. In 2010, Labmedicin Skåne employed 1,250 people and realized a turnover of 10 million euros.
About Barco
Barco, a global technology company, designs and develops visualization products for a variety of selected professional markets. Barco has its own facilities for Sales & Marketing, Customer Support, R&D and Manufacturing in Europe, North America and Asia Pacific. Barco (NYSE Euronext Brussels: BAR) is active in more than 90 countries with about 3,500 employees worldwide. Barco posted sales of 897 million euros in 2010.
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