DicoFlow LIMS · Laboratory
Every sample, from first draw to a signed, QC-gated report
DicoFlow LIMS plans tubes in order of draw, routes work to the right bench, holds results when the latest QC run failed, and locks every finalized report with a digital signature — on your own server.
The lab workflow
Nine steps, one record per sample
Billing creates the lab order, the specimens and the work assignments. Each step then hands over to the next, with a quality loop running alongside.
- STEP 01
Register & bill
One screen raises the bill. The lab order, specimens and work assignments are created from it automatically.
- STEP 02
Plan tubes & print labels
Tests are grouped into tubes in CLSI GP41 order of draw, and 50 × 25 mm Code128 labels print on any thermal printer.
- STEP 03
Collect
The phlebotomy board, home-collection visits and timed multi-draw protocols, with due and overdue alerts.
- STEP 04
Receive & accession
Condition and temperature are recorded at receipt. A rejected sample carries a reason code and raises a redraw.
- STEP 05
Route to bench
Work flows from test to department to role worklist. Incubations run on their own countdown lane.
- STEP 06
Analyze
Analyzer or manual entry, with the same checks either way: flags, delta check, critical alerts and reflex tests.
- STEP 07
Verify
Auto-verification rules for analyzer results, then technical and medical review — behind the QC release gate.
- STEP 08
Report & e-sign
Technician, supervisor and pathologist sign off in turn. The final report is cryptographically signed and locked.
- STEP 09
Dispatch
Print, email, WhatsApp, SMS or a secure link — with an automatic “report ready” message to the patient.
The quality loop runs alongside every step
QC, external quality assessment and turnaround are recorded as the work happens, not rebuilt at audit time.
Pre-analytical
The right tubes, labelled, before the needle goes in
Tests are grouped into tubes, with volume split where needed, and sorted by CLSI GP41 order of draw. Labels print at 50 × 25 mm in Code128 from the browser, to any thermal printer.
- Accession numbers carry your lab code and the date: CODE-YYMMDD-0001.
- The phlebotomy board runs In Queue → In Working → Completed. “Collect” stays locked until every tube is barcoded.
- Batch handover records transport temperature and condition; receipt records condition and temperature again.
- A sample tracking board shows every tube’s lifecycle on a timeline.
Tube plan
Patient A · 34 Y / F · LAB-261005-0412
Draw order →
- 01Light blue
- 02Gold
- 03Lavender
- 04Grey
- Barcoded
Sodium citrate · 3.2% citrate
PT / INR
- Barcoded
Serum separator (SST) · Clot activator + gel
LFT · KFT · Lipid profile — 3 tests, one tube
- Barcoded
EDTA · K2-EDTA
CBC · HbA1c — 2 tests, one tube
- Print label
Fluoride oxalate · NaF / K-oxalate
Glucose - Fasting
1 tube still to barcode —
Collect unlocks at 4/4.
LAB2610050412
50 × 25 mm · Code128 · 203 dpi thermal
Timed draws
Multi-draw protocols for GTT, GCT and diurnal cortisol, with due and overdue alerts.
GTT · Patient D3 draws
- 0 min08:00Collected
- 60 min09:00Collected
- 120 min10:00Overdue 6m
Home collection
Visits booked by slot and tracked from Scheduled through En route to Completed.
Home visit · Rohan G.07:00–08:00
- Scheduled
- En route
- In progress
- Completed
Reject, then redraw
Nine reason codes. A rejected sample raises a redraw automatically, without a second bill.
Reject · LAB-261005-03989 codes
Redraw raised · no re-billing
Chain of custody
An append-only trail per tube, with transport temperature and aliquot lineage.
Tube S-0412 · SSTappend-only
- Collected08:12
- Handover · 2–8 °C · intact08:40
- Received & accessioned08:55
Bench & results
Every result passes the same checks — analyzer or manual
Work routes automatically from test to department to role worklist. Whether a value arrives from an analyzer or is typed at the bench, it is checked the same way before anyone can verify it.
- Reference ranges by sex, age and condition — and the report shows which range applied.
- Delta check against the previous result; absurd values held at hard limits (CLSI AUTO10-style).
- Critical value desk with live alerts, escalation counters and mandatory read-back. Sign-off stays blocked until every critical is acknowledged.
- Rule-based reflex tests with billing rules, and an incubation countdown lane for cultures, AFB, ESR and ELISA.
- Multi-parameter panels (urine, stool, semen, CBC), calculated tests from a formula engine, and re-runs with full history.
Result entry · Biochemistry
Patient C · 29 Y / F · LAB-261005-0421
Sodium
136 – 145
138mmol/L
136 – 145
NormalPotassium
3.5 – 5.1
6.9mmol/L
3.5 – 5.1
CriticalCreatinine
0.5 – 1.1 · Female, 18 y+
1.9mg/dL
0.5 – 1.1Female, 18 y+
HΔ 0.8 → 1.9TSH
0.1 – 2.5 · Pregnancy, 1st trimester
4.6µIU/mL
0.1 – 2.5Pregnancy, 1st trimester
HReflex · Free T4Uric acid
2.6 – 6.0 · Female
72mg/dL
2.6 – 6.0Female
Absurd value · held
Critical value desk
1 openPotassium6.9 mmol/L
Patient C · escalation ×2 · open 14 min
Until every critical is acknowledged
Incubation lane
4 runningUrine culture18h 20m left
AFB culture39d 04h left
ESR38m left
ELISA52m left
Quality control
QC that blocks release, not just reports it
Westgard multirule is evaluated on the server for every QC run. When the latest run on an instrument or department fails, its results stay held until QC passes.
Levey-Jennings · Glucose · QC level 2
30-day view · Westgard multirule evaluated on the server
Westgard multirule
Six rules, applied to every QC run.
- 1-2sOne control beyond ±2 SDWarning
- 1-3sOne control beyond ±3 SDReject
- 2-2sTwo in a row beyond the same 2 SD limitReject
- R-4sTwo controls more than 4 SD apartReject
- 4-1sFour in a row beyond the same 1 SD limitReject
- 10xTen in a row on one side of the meanReject
QC release gate
No result is released unless the latest QC run on that instrument or department passed. The check runs three times — at both verification levels and again at finalize.
- Technical verifyHeld
- Medical verifyHeld
- FinalizeHeld
Auto-verification, rule by rule
Rules are set per test and apply to analyzer results. A result is auto-verified only when every condition holds; anything else goes to technical, then medical review.
- Result within range
- No delta-check flag
- Latest QC passed
- Received from the instrument
- No critical value
- Auto-verified
Reports & e-signature
Signed in sequence, then locked
Technician, supervisor and pathologist sign off in turn, and the report reads “NOT VALID” until the last signature. On finalize it is locked with a SHA-256 hash and an Ed25519 signature.
Sign-off chain
RPT-261005-2E19
Technician10:12
Results entered · technical review
Supervisor10:31
Medical verification
Pathologist10:41
E-signed
Locked on finalize
- SHA-256
- 9f2c7e…a1b4d041
- Ed25519
- signature valid
- ULR
- NABL2600000304F
Versions
- RPT-261005-2E19Original
- RPT-261005-2E19-A1Amendment · same ULR
Each report carries a NABL ULR number. An amendment creates a new version (-A1, -A2…) under the same parent ULR, so the history stays readable. Microbiology, histopathology and cytology use templated reports.
- 34 report layouts
- Matched to each test automatically — CBC, culture & sensitivity, histopathology, Bethesda cytology, coagulation, dynamic endocrine, health check-up and more.
- One shared report editor
- Results grid with rich text, images, templates and macros, a live A4 preview, autosave and an edit lock.
- Two print themes
- Traditional Indian letterhead or Modern. Upload your logo and letterhead, or print without a header on pre-printed stationery.
- Cumulative trend report
- Previous results side by side, with trend arrows and sparklines for each parameter.
- Partial & preliminary release
- Release part of a report with a recorded reason, backed by a 72-hour escalation.
- Report booklets
- One combined PDF for the patient, with a cover page and an index.
Analyzer interfacing
Results arrive from the analyzer, not the keyboard
DicoFlow LIMS supports ASTM E1394, HL7 v2.x over MLLP and CSV file drop, across five connection modes. On ASTM and HL7 links the conversation runs both ways: host query in, worklist down, results back.
- Every message is saved to a journal before it is processed.
- Unit mismatches on incoming results are detected.
- Named drivers built from vendor interface specifications: HORIBA Yumizen H550E (haematology, bidirectional), bioMérieux mini VIDAS and VIDAS KUBE, ACON Mission U120 (urine).
- Analyzer results go through the same flags, delta and critical checks as manual entry.
Three analyzer interfaces are included in Year 1. More can be added later as add-ons — ask for a quote with your analyzer list.
Named drivers
HORIBA Yumizen H550E
HaematologyBidirectional
bioMérieux mini VIDAS
ImmunoassayResults
bioMérieux VIDAS KUBE
ImmunoassayResults
ACON Mission U120
UrineResults
ASTM E1394
over E1381
HL7 v2.x
over MLLP
CSV
file drop
DicoFlow LIMS · message journal
saved before processing- 09:41:12ASTMR|1|^^^HGB|11.2|g/dLparsed
- 09:41:40HL7ORU^R01 · 14 resultsparsed
- 09:42:05HL7QRY^Q02 → ORM^O01 worklistsent
- 09:42:31FILEresults.csv · GLU unit mismatchflagged
Quality & NABL
Accreditation evidence, kept as you work
DicoFlow LIMS is designed to support NABL accreditation evidence. The ISO 15189:2022 clause register comes pre-loaded with 36 clauses for gap analysis, and the quality registers sit next to the work they describe.
- Quality registers and dashboards, including a NABL compliance-score view.
- Westgard multirule QC with 30-day Levey-Jennings charts, plus inventory and calibration-due views.
- NABL ULR numbers on reports; amendments keep the parent ULR.
- A tamper-evident, hash-chained audit trail and an append-only custody trail per tube.
- Lab results, text and interpretations encrypted at rest with AES-256-GCM.
ISO 15189:2022 clause register
Gap analysis · 36 clauses pre-loaded
Met 23 Partial 9 Gap 4
- 5.6Risk managementPartial
- 6.2PersonnelMet
- 6.5Equipment calibration and metrological traceabilityMet
- 7.3.7.2Internal quality controlMet
- 7.3.7.3External quality assessmentPartial
- 8.3Control of management system documentsMet
- 8.7Nonconformities and corrective actionsGap
Quality registers
- EQAS
- CAPA
- Internal audit
- Risk register / FMEA
- Document control & SOPs
- Quality indicators
- Competency & training
- Inventory & calibration due
Dispatch & turnaround
Delivered, confirmed and on the clock
The dispatch counter refuses unsigned reports and marks a delivery as sent only when the provider confirms it. Turnaround is tracked across six stages, each with an owner.
Dispatch counter
Proof-of-dispatch log for every report
- WhatsAppDelivered
Patient A
RPT-261005-2E19
- EmailAwaiting provider
Rohan G.
RPT-261005-2F07
- CounterHanded over
Patient C
RPT-261005-2F11
- —Refused · unsigned
Patient D
RPT-261005-2F15
Automatic “report ready”: WhatsApp firstSMS fallback
Lab TAT by stage
Median today vs target · each stage has an owner
Collection · Phlebotomist
6m/15mQuickReceiving · Lab technician
11m/15mNormalAnalysis · Lab technician
52m/60mLateVerification · Supervisor
19m/15mBreachedReporting · Pathologist
9m/30mQuickDispatch · Reception
3m/10mQuick
Secure share link
Valid for 72 hours, with an optional password. The recipient needs no login.
Role boards
Phlebotomist, technician, supervisor and pathologist boards with live TAT badges, on-time % and median times.
Your own providers
Connects to your WhatsApp, SMS and email provider accounts. Targets and breach alerts are configurable.
- Report layouts
- 34
- Disease panels
- 263
- Starter-catalogue tests
- 270
- ISO 15189:2022 clauses
- 36
Auto-matched per test
ICD-10-tagged, 17 categories
12 departments, one click
Pre-loaded for gap analysis
FAQ
Questions labs ask us
Short answers on analyzers, NABL, QC, criticals, set-up and licensing.
See your own test menu on DicoFlow LIMS
Book a guided demo on your own test menu, analyzers and report layouts. We will show the screens your phlebotomists, technicians and pathologists use.