Biobank Management Software Archives - INTERACTIVE SOFTWARE

Are you Biobanking or Bio-hoarding?

Gary Rooksby — Wed, 09 Dec 2020 15:03:39 +0000

I was watching an excellent presentation by Prof Daniel Catchpool, the current president of ISBER, at the Europe Biobank Week 2020, and he raised this specific question in a very insightful way. Anyone who manages a biobank has a multitude of constant considerations to juggle. These can relate to consent management, ethics, legislation, resource constraints and balancing budgets. It’s not often you can pause to think about the fundamentals of what you are doing. To realign your daily work to the principles on which your biobank was founded. Are enough of your samples being released to researchers or are they just sitting in your freezers? Is it time to step back and ask yourself if you’re biobanking or bio-hoarding? What is biobanking for? This sounds like such an obvious question but it’s so important to pause to consider it whenever you get the chance. You are involved at the leading edge of medical research with the aim of improving outcomes for patients. Helping to improve lives and save lives. That’s a pretty sobering thought. You are a key link in a resource chain that connects generous donors with researchers, with the aim of furthering medical science. And there are two […]

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The Importance of Sample Request Approval and Fulfilment Processes in Biobanks

Sharon Williams — Mon, 11 May 2020 08:00:41 +0000

As a Biobank having high quality samples is essential for your reputation and success. You’ve probably defined protocols and standard operating procedures (SOPs) that you follow when storing and processing samples. Likewise, you may use spreadsheets or dedicated systems to make sure your sample data is as complete and accurate as possible. But that’s just the beginning. You also need to make sure your samples are used. So, you need to publicise the samples that you want to make available to researchers. And once researchers have chosen the samples they need and you’ve approved them, you then have to release and send them – promptly and securely. So, how geared up is your Biobank to manage and fulfil any incoming sample requests? Knowing how many tissue sample requests you’re receiving Do you know how many requests you receive each week? In order to answer this question you need to have a mechanism for recording all your incoming requests. It can be time consuming if you’re receiving requests via email that you then type into a spreadsheet. Emails could arrive in any format – taking time and effort just to decipher what’s required. Spreadsheets can help to capture basic data. But […]

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The Role of Achiever Medical LIMS in Supporting Disease-Specific Biobanks

Sharon Williams — Thu, 23 Apr 2020 08:00:35 +0000

The fundamental role of Biobanks is to provide quality biological samples to help further research. Ultimately helping shape new vaccines and cures for diseases. Your Biobank might include historical samples as well as current ones. As a disease-specific Biobank the profile data you hold about your participants is as important as the information about your samples. Being able to hold disease-specific information against each participant in your Biobank helps you build up a greater understanding of your samples. This can have a significant impact on research outcomes. Plus, being able to add to the data as you discover more about the person and the disease means you’re continuing to develop even more valuable insight. Achiever Medical’s core LIMS functionality enables you to manage your disease-specific collections. As well as record detailed profile information about your participants, their diseases and their samples. All this helps researchers find the samples they need. What’s more it helps you make sure you use every sample in a way that achieves optimum results. Making Every Sample Matter. Defining disease projects and collections Being a disease-specific Biobank doesn’t mean you only hold biological samples relating to one disease. You may hold several disease-specific sample collections in […]

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Treating donors as partners in Biobank research

Gary Rooksby — Wed, 18 Mar 2020 09:00:13 +0000

When people donate their tissue, they are making an important contribution to research. Research that’s developing treatments for patients for future generations. One estimate gives the percentage of donated samples actually being used for research at only 15%1. Far too many are stored and never used. Instead, they are destroyed as ethics, consent or funding eventually runs out. This situation goes against the donors’ wishes and misses the opportunity for progressing biomedical research and discoveries. Although there is often a willingness to participate, many donors still have concerns about how their donated tissue samples will be used. So, if they knew many samples were not actually being used would these selfless people continue to donate? The driving priorities for a Biobank should be to maximise the number of samples going out to researchers. At the same time you’re looking to maximise the number of good quality biological samples coming in from donors. We have covered the first of these in blogs such as Achiever Medical’s automatic links to UKCRC but today we’re looking at the latter. It’s about building trust and also involving your Biobank participants who have a genuine interest in how they’re helping – and where they could […]

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Benefits of Configurable LIMS and Biobanking Software

Gary Rooksby — Tue, 10 Mar 2020 09:00:07 +0000

When it comes to configurable Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS), Biobank Information Management System (BIMS) and Sample Tracking Software – “It Ain’t What You Do, It’s The Way That You Do It”… And as the old song continues, “…that’s what gets results”. Well, with Laboratory Information Management Systems (LIMS) and Biobanking software we know that everything is about results. If you’re in the market for a new system, then you need to be confident that any promised benefits will actually materialise. A configurable Biobanking system or LIMS can help you get the most from your investment by increasing the software’s longevity. As a result, the software continues to meet your requirements in the future. And if you can do this without investing in months of training or specialist developers this will keep costs down. But let’s face facts. Absolutely every LIMS or BIMS supplier says their system is “ultimately flexible” and “configurable to your exact needs”. So, how do you start to differentiate between all those wonderful claims? And what exactly does ‘configurable LIMS’ mean? Firstly, you need to understand the different configuration tools suppliers use in their systems. This allows you to validate those claims and understand which best […]

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It’s all in the cloud! The advantages of cloud-based LIMS and BIMS

Gary Rooksby — Mon, 20 Jan 2020 09:00:48 +0000

Have you noticed how many Laboratory Information Management Systems (LIMS) and Biobank Information Management Systems (BIMS) are migrating to the cloud? Are cloud-based LIMS or BIMS just a fad or are there some advantages and tangible benefits to it? Cloud-based LIMS and BIMS usually offer Software as a Service (SaaS). This means that you a soon as you sign up, you have a URL to access your software of choice. You don’t install anything on your servers or machines. Instead, the software, and your data, is held and managed on externally hosted and managed systems. Whether you’re wondering about your current system’s ongoing suitability or are already in the market for a new one you should be aware of both the advantages and disadvantages of offloading your data into the cloud. Many modern systems run completely within web browsers This, in general, is a very good thing – simplifying or removing the need to install complex software on local computers before you can access your data. But, and it is a big “but”, that doesn’t necessarily mean that you want to make the leap and put all your data on the internet in a cloud-based LIMS or BIMS. So why […]

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Achiever Medical – the only software for Biobanks that links to the UKCRC Tissue Directory to publish your sample holdings

Sharon Williams — Tue, 26 Nov 2019 13:21:04 +0000

The competition is tough out there for Biobanks. You’re competing with commercial as well as academic Biobanks. And you need your Biobank to stand out and be noticed. You want to be the first point of call for researchers who are sourcing samples and for funders who are ready to invest. Reputation is everything. Where better to start than publishing your tissue sample holdings data on a renowned directory like the UKCRC Tissue Directory? This might sound easier said than done. However, Achiever Medical makes it easier – and quicker – for you to do just that. Plus, it’s the only software for Biobanks with live links that automatically send your sample holdings data to the UKCRC Tissue Directory. Reasons why you don’t currently publish your tissue sample holdings to the UKCRC Tissue Directory You know that publishing your sample holdings data to the UKCRC Tissue Directory will help your Biobank increase its exposure and improve its reputation. But you may see getting your data to it as challenging and time-consuming. Achiever Medical software for Biobanks has been designed to help overcome these challenges so you can get the most from your tissue samples and achieve your goal to further […]

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Using Biobanking software for compliance peace of mind

Sharon Williams — Tue, 12 Nov 2019 16:25:11 +0000

Two key challenges facing your lab or Biobank are quality and efficiency. You may introduce and follow a set of standard processes to address these. And, to be successful, everyone in your lab or Biobank must follow these processes too. These processes may form your Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs). You may have chosen them from your own best-practices or legislation such as the Human Tissue Act (HTA) and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). Or you may have chosen to follow industry-standard best-practices such as those outlined by the International Society for Biological and Environmental Repositories (ISBER) or ISO. Whatever processes you decide to use to improve quality and efficiency, how do you know that everyone is following them? And, importantly, if they’re working? If you can’t answer this, you may want to think about using Biobanking software for compliance management and tracking. Enforcing processes through your Biobanking software for compliance Advanced Biobanking software allows you to map your workflows and processes into the system. And some Biobanking software already has key processes built-in as part of the standard ‘out-of-the-box’ system. Achiever Medical, for example, has workflows to manage your sample receipts, storage, processing, and shipping – amongst […]

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6 ways modern Biobanking software promotes best-practice

Gary Rooksby — Wed, 06 Nov 2019 16:26:34 +0000

When you use or implement any software system you hope it’s going to improve how you do things and impact the quality and integrity of your data. When adopting new software, many companies underestimate the business changes that it will introduce. This is especially true for systems that underpin your critical lab and sample management processes. Even if you already have systems in place, keeping them relevant as your needs change is essential. If you are prepared for change then these systems can deliver real business benefits and impact. This is especially true with Biobanking software that, amongst its proven benefits, can help promote “best-practice” in your lab and Biobank. What’s meant by “best-practice” when it comes to Biobanking? As a Biobank you will no doubt have to comply with the appropriate legislation. Compliance is not only a legal requirement but also instils best-practice. Many compliance requirements are there to make sure that what you are doing is of a high-quality and standard. Compliance gives labs and Biobanks that quality seal of approval. However, when implemented correctly compliance can also give you additional benefits including saving time and costs. So, don’t think of compliance as something to ‘get through’ but […]

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5 ways Biobank Information Management Software (BIMS) can help raise your Biobank’s profile

Gary Rooksby — Wed, 30 Oct 2019 17:12:38 +0000

For your Biobank to be effective you need researchers to be regularly requesting your tissue samples. This means you need to make them aware of your Biobank and what you have to offer. You’re competing with other Biobanks – both academic and commercial. In order to stand out from the crowd you need to be clear on why you’re different as well as making sure your Biobank has a good reputation. So how can you do this when your resources and finances are already stretched. This is where having effective Biobank Information Management software (BIMS) can really help. 1. Register with a directory – and keep your sample inventory up to date Your first step when raising your profile should be to register your Biobank with a national registry such as the UKCRC. It’s easy to register and many funders now insist that you do. So, if you want funding, it’s an easy choice. In addition, it’s worth noting that, even if you’re already registered with the UKCRC you should look at the level of detail it now accepts. As now you can automatically upload tissue data (numbers, types, formats, donor types, etc). Plus, the UKCRC directory has search capabilities […]

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