Communication of results

Reports

All reports issued by the department are available on the relevant Trusts’ electronic systems.  This will be EPR at Wythenshawe site and Lorenzo within Tameside.  For primary care, paper reports are distributed to the GP practice systems.

Paper reports are still sent to the users at Tameside and some GP practices.  Tameside reports, including those for the Tameside GP practices, are transported back to the Pathology Department at Tameside site using the twice daily transport.  They are then distributed as required from Tameside Pathology.  Paper reports for GP practices within the Wythenshawe Site catchment area are sent via second class post.

Histology Reports

Users are requested to check if final reports are available on the patient chart in HIVE before making enquiries. Please note that clerical staff will not give report details over the telephone.

Turnaround times

The Histopathology department monitors turnaround times in line with the RCPath key performance indicators – proposals for implementation July 2013. This document states that 80% of diagnostic cases should be reported within 7 calendar days and 90% within 10 calendar days.

For up-to-date information on the department’s current turnaround figures, please contact the Laboratory Manager.

The department works to RCPath Key Performance Indicators (KPI). The target is to report 80% of diagnostic biopsy cases within 7 days, and 80% of all specimens within 10 days (except those requiring decalcification).

Reporting times for all specimens, including urgent and HSC205, may be extended if they are high risk specimens, large resection specimens or calcified or bony samples. Any case requiring specialist techniques such as immunohistochemistry or electron microscopy will also likely have extended reporting times. Some cases may require referral to a specialist referral centre, which can prolong reporting times. This would include samples such as lymphomas, which are routinely referred to the Christie via the Haematological Cancer Diagnostics Service. However, a preliminary report would be issued beforehand.  An appropriate frozen section request will aim to be reported by telephone within 60 minutes. Frozen sections should normally be booked with the laboratory beforehand.

To ensure we meet our turnaround time targets, all urgent and HSC205 specimens must be clearly labelled as such. There are several factors that may affect the turnaround time of a specimen, such as those mentioned in Factors Affecting Performance.

(Last updated April 2023)