University hospital in Finland invests in digital pathology from Sectra

Kuopio University Hospital will be Finland's first fully digital pathology department following its investment in Sectra's IT solution for efficient storage, review and sharing of digital pathology images. The Diagnostic Imaging Center at Kuopio University Hospital is thereby extending its existing solution for handling radiology images (PACS) to also include pathology images. This enables in-depth cooperation between the hospital's radiologists and pathologists; two of the key functions in effective clinical care.

”With this enterprise imaging solution, we will increase efficiency in pathology as well as improve overall patient care. The investment is a crucial step in our strategy to improve workflow and diagnostics for better patient care,” says Vesa Kärjä, Adjunct Professor and Chief of Clinical Pathology at Kuopio University Hospital.  

Increased reading efficiency

With the solution, pathologists will gain access to new tools that support their diagnostic work. Moreover, the centrally stored images are available for review from any location, even remotely, or for discussion among experts, which may be crucial in complex cancer cases. The solution will be tightly integrated with the hospital's LIMS (Laboratory Information Management System) providing full access to lab data, requests, patient information and digital pathology images. This will allow pathologists to work completely digitally when performing primary diagnostics, thereby increasing reading efficiency.

Improved multi-disciplinary cooperation

Sectra's digital pathology solution builds on the same infrastructure as Sectra's solution for handling radiology images that is already used at the Kuopio University Hospital. With a shared technical infrastructure, images from both of the diagnostic specialties can be stored and displayed in a single system. This not only facilitates cooperation between the hospital's radiologists and pathologists, it also significantly increases efficiency in the multidisciplinary meetings held at the hospital. In addition, the hospital's maintenance and operating costs are reduced.

The pathology department at Kuopio University Hospital employs eight pathologists and handles approximately 100,000 glass slides and about 27,000 histological and cytological examinations per year. It operates as a subdivision of the hospital's Diagnostic Imaging Center, which includes e.g. radiology and nuclear medicine.

The solution was sold by Commit; Oy, Sectra's distribution partner for Finland.

About Sectra's digital pathology solution

Sectra provides a complete solution for primary diagnostics in pathology. The solution includes archiving and storage solutions together with high-end review workstations. It allows pathologists to make their diagnoses and reports with higher precision and less time spent per case. Sectra's solution for digital pathology is built on the same platform as Sectra's radiology PACS, the solution for managing radiology images. With a shared technical platform, images from both of the diagnostic specialties can be stored and displayed in a single system. This enables deeper cooperation between radiologists and pathologists and facilitates, for example, multidisciplinary rounds, which is a step in integrated diagnostics.

European and Scandinavian pathology departments are in the process of digitizing their work, but nonetheless, only a few hospitals have implemented full-scale digital pathology solutions. In the US, digital pathology for primary diagnostics is still pending FDA approval.

About Kuopio

Kuopio University Hospital caters for the specialist medical care of the 248,000 citizens in its area. It also caters for the nearly one million inhabitants in Eastern and Central Finland that require tertiary level specialist medical care. As one of Finland's five university hospitals, Kuopio University Hospital provides high-quality care in all medical specialties, conducts internationally-renowned research, and trains the top experts of the future. The hospital is the largest trainer of physicians in Finland, and one of the largest health care industry teaching hospitals in the country. More information.

About Sectra

The world needs more efficient healthcare and more secure communication. Sectra plays a key role in meeting these needs. Sectra assists hospitals throughout the world to enhance the efficiency of care, and authorities and defense forces in Europe to protect society's most sensitive information. The company was founded in 1978, has its head office in Linköping, Sweden, with subsidiaries in 14 countries, and operates through partners worldwide. Sales in the 2014/2015 fiscal year totaled SEK 961 million. The Sectra share is quoted on the Nasdaq Stockholm exchange. For more information, visit www.sectra.com