User:Shawndouglas/sandbox/sublevel5

Title: What are the key elements of a LIMS for forensics and medical examiners?

Author for citation: Shawn E. Douglas

License for content: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International

Publication date: June 2022

Summary

A forensics and medical examiners lab may analyze anything from body fluids and bone fragments to metals and fire debris as part of their broad commitment to answering questions of interest to a legal system. These laboratory-based investigations see scientists collect, preserve, and analyze these types of samples (i.e., evidence) using a variety of special laboratory equipment and techniques. Given their role in verifying the status of evidence, the forensics lab will also see its laboratorians take part in legal proceedings, requiring even more strict requirements for data and evidence management. This broad array of analytical techniques and set of legal implications means such labs turning to informatics solutions like the laboratory information management system (LIMS) will require their information management solutions to meet the specific needs of their lab.

This brief topical article will examine the typical forensics and medical examiners lab's workflow and suggest a base set of LIMS functionality (i.e., system requirements) that is critical to fulfilling the information management and workflow requirements of this lab type.

Note: Any citation leading to a software vendor's site is not to be considered a recommendation for that vendor. The citation should however still stand as representational example of what functionality vendors are implementing in their systems.

Laboratory routine and workflow

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) duly notes that forensic science is a discipline that is multi-disciplinary, spanning from forensic chemistry, molecular biology, and toxicology to anthropology and entomology.

Base LIMS requirements

What follows is a list of system functionality important to most any forensics and medical examiner laboratory, with a majority of that functionality found in many vendor software solutions.:

Test, sample and case management

• Sample, property and evidence log-in and management, with support for unique IDs.
• Support for pre-logging of death and evidence data before physical materials arrive.
• Body reception, location and disposition support.
• Barcode and RFID support.
• End-to-end sample, body, property and evidence tracking.
• Custom and industry-specific test management, including for breath alcohol and sexual assault testing.
• Test, instrument, subpoena and other event scheduling
• Configurable screens and data fields
• Analytical tools, including data visualization, statistical analysis and data mining tools.
• Data import and export.
• Robust query tools.
• Document and image management.
• Workflow management.
• Case management, including case assignment, reassignment and prioritization, with support for unique IDs:
  • Story-related entry for cases.
  • Geolocation capture and support.
  • Mass casualty event support.
  • Cluster and crime scene mapping tools.
  • Mobile and offline data entry support for remote work.
  • Dashboard view of all pertinent information for a case.

Quality, security and compliance

• Quality assurance / quality control mechanisms.
• Standardized terminology via built-in dictionaries and medical classification codes like ICD.
• National Association of Medical Examiners (NAME) and International Association of Coroners and Medical Examiners (IAC&ME) accreditation support.
• Results review and approval.
• User qualification, performance and training management.
• Audit trails and chain of custody support.
• Configurable and granular role-based security.
• Configurable system access and use (log-in requirements, account usage rules, account locking, etc.).
• Electronic signature support.
• Data encryption and secure communication protocols.
• Archiving and retention of case and other data and information.
• Configurable data backups.
• Status updates and alerts.

Operations management and reporting

• Customizable rich-text reporting, with multiple supported output formats.
• Custom and industry-specific forms, including body release, autopsy authorization, media release, cremation authorization, subpoena, etc.
• Support for state-specific death certificates.
• Industry-compliant labeling.
• Email integration.
• Instrument interfacing and data management.
• Instrument calibration and maintenance tracking.
• Inventory and reagent management.
• Third-party software and database interfacing.
• Integrated (or online) system help.
• Hour, mileage, and expense tracking.

Specialty LIMS requirements

As noted previously, the DOJ points out many disciplines that are used in and near the forensics laboratory. It is beyond the scope of this article to address the system functionality for every single discipline. However, an attempt has been made to cover the most important disciplines and sub-disciplines associated with forensics and medical examiners labs in regards to LIMS functionality.

Forensic pathology and histology

The workflows of a forensic pathology and histology (or histopathology) lab tend to be marginally different from their purely clinical counterpart. That said, a LIMS that addresses forensic pathology and histology will still need to address (or allow users to)