PHII :: Work :: Public Health Laboratories

Collaborative Development of LIMS Logical Design

Purpose
This was the final project in a series whose purpose was to provide the Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL) and its member public health laboratories (PHLs) with the information and tools to meet their Laboratory Information Management Systems (LIMS) needs over the next 10 years.

Project summary
In 2002-2003, the Public Health Informatics Institute, the Association of Public Health Laboratories, the APHL Informatics Committee, and 16 designated state and local public health laboratories collaborated to identify and delineate 16 business processes of LIMS and specify requirements for LIMS. The project produced a LIMS requirements document that could be used by all public health laboratories and LIMS vendors. The next step was to produce a LIMS logical design document. In the first phase of the design project (November 2003-June 2004), 26 PHLs collaborated with the Institute to produce logical design specifications for the priority requirements. In the final phase of the project (July 2004-March 2005), 24 PHLs collaborated to complete the logical design document. Both the requirements document and the logical design are owned by APHL. The requirements document and the logical design for the priority business processes are available at www.aphl.org/programs/informatics. The second phase of the logical design will be posted to that site soon.

In addition, the Institute presented APHL with a recommendation for a strategy that meets APHL’s national goals and assures sustainable, robust public health LIMS that are affordably priced. The strategy paper analyzed PHLs’ needs for LIMS in light of APHL’s long-term goals and the PHL environment, including the LIMS marketplace, forecasts for funding, and the availability of the LIMS requirements and logical design, which significantly reduces the risk of LIMS development. The paper recommends a two-component strategy: APHL support for 1) collaborative consortia of PHLs adopting commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) LIMS products, and 2) a collaborative consortium of PHLs to develop LIMS.

Client and funding source
All phases of the LIMS project were supported by a grant from The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

Case Study: A Collaboration to Develop a Logical Design for Public Health Laboratory Information Management Systems

Case Study:Developing a Charter for a Collaborative Requirements Project

Batteries Not Included: Understanding the total cost of ownership for a commercial off-the shelf public health laboratory information management system.

Logical Design Document for Public Health Laboratory Information Management Systems

Contact: Anita Renahan-White, Project Manager, Public Health Informatics Institute.