Key points
CDC and the Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL) offer FREE eLearning introductory laboratory informatics courses.
Introduction to Laboratory Informatics: Life of a Specimen
This basic-level eLearning course is the first of a two-part introductory module on laboratory informatics. The course provides information on the role and processes of laboratory informatics through exploration of the “life of a specimen” as a specimen moves through the laboratory.
Topics covered include:
- The roles of various personnel in the laboratory informatics enterprise
- Data relationships
- Data quality and standards
- The generation and flow of information as a specimen progresses through the pre-analytic, analytic, and post-analytic phases
Introduction to Laboratory Informatics: Life of a Result
This basic-level eLearning course is the second of a two-part introductory module on laboratory informatics. The course provides information on the role and processes of laboratory informatics through exploration of the “life of a result” as data and results move through the laboratory and outside the laboratory.
Topics covered include:
- Characterization of the recipients of laboratory data
- Data and results storage
- The communication of data and results (especially electronically) to various stakeholders
Introduction to the LIMS & Other Information Systems
This basic-level eLearning course provides an overview of the Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS) – also known as a Laboratory Information System – and other information systems that play a key role in laboratory informatics.
Included in the course are:
- Explorations of LIMS functionality
- The role of the LIMS in interoperability
- Various regulations and standards regarding information systems and laboratory data
- The steps in implementing a LIMS