As the digital revolution continues to sweep across the field of laboratory medicine, five new digital pathology centers will open in the UK in 2019. The aspiration? Helping hospitals reduce manual reporting and increase the number of digital scans and biopsy images. The £50 million investment in the centers – located in London, Oxford, Glasgow, Leeds, and Coventry – comes from the UK government and business partners, and will provide the National Health Service (NHS) with the infrastructure and training for scanning equipment.
Some pathologists remain skeptical about the field’s digital future, but the centers aim to emphasize the need to keep laboratory professionals at the forefront of new technologies. “NHS pathologists will play a key role in the co-development of new tools within these centers, along with engagement and outreach work to the wider pathology community,” says a spokesperson for UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), the organization that allocated the funding. “Development of the centers has been led by active pathologists, and ongoing collaboration with leading professional bodies will play a key role in their success.”
Spearheaded by leading medical companies, the centers bring together teams that will use artificial intelligence to develop the image analysis tools that UKRI believes are the future. “The ultimate aim is to achieve a wholly digital service. However, this ambition is still some way off, and it’s clear that there is work to be done with the pathology community to ensure that their needs and aspirations are met by any digital future. These centers will hopefully enable that journey to begin in earnest, in partnership with NHS pathologists and patients.”
Another goal of the centers is to have an impact on the future recruitment of pathologists. The UKRI says, “We hope that this type of high-profile investment in the field will help to showcase the rich rewards and opportunities of a career in pathology. The centers will provide an integrated training environment for early-career clinicians with an interest in pathology.”
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