A Computer-Assisted Surgical Pathology System

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Abstract
SURPATH is a comprehensive, integrated computer-assisted system for service, research, and management in surgical pathology that has been in use at New England Medical Center (NEMC) since July 1, 1978. Functions of the system include: maintenance of patient-name and diagnostic files; generation, editing, and printing of preliminary and final specimen reports; SNOMED coding and indexing of diagnoses; retrieval and video display or printing of data on individual cases or groups of cases; billing and generation of billing reports; and, calculation of intervals between accession and signout of specimens. Use of the system has greatly facilitated the production of surgical pathology reports; increased the speed with which inquiries about individual specimens can be answered; provided rapid, accurate searches of the diagnostic files; improved timeliness, accuracy, and completeness of billing resulting in increased departmental revenue; reduced intervals between accession and reporting; and, improved the morale of the professional and support staffs.