Transcription

• Nancy Johnson

  The CAP raises concern about proposed new rules for health IT, LabCorp is boosting its use of AI, and a look at burnout levels among pathologists. These stories and more coming up next. This is Path News Network Daily Edition from the College of American Pathologists. I'm Nancy Johnson. It's Friday, March 6th. The CAP submitted comments to the Department of Health and Human Services, expressing concerns about its HTI-5 proposed rule, which would loosen informational requirements for health IT. The CAP said it supports interoperability in health IT, meaning the seamless exchange of medical information across organizations to improve clinical care. But the CAP also highlighted transparency and patient safety. especially when using AI. In particular, the CAP cautioned against immediate release of test results to patients without clinical review, which can lead to misinterpretation and distress. LabCorp is ramping up its use of PathAI's digital pathology platform across all of its anatomic pathology laboratories and hospitals located in the U.S. The company will use the AI-powered tools to review, interpret, and manage digital images of scanned surgical pathology slides for primary diagnosis. LabCorp said the agreement will enable the company to scale digital pathology nationwide and integrate more AI-driven insights into clinical care. Dr. Julia Keith is a practicing neuropathologist. an associate professor at the University of Toronto. She surveyed 427 Canadian pathologists using a standard assessment that measures burnout level. What she found was sobering, a 58% prevalence of burnout versus 44% for physicians in general in similar studies. Workload plays a part. But as Dr. Keith explained on Beyond the Test, A new podcast from the CAP Foundation, many pathologists also cited another factor.

• Dr. Julia Keith

  So nearly half of Canadian pathologists reported being in a state of chronic pain related to their work were a bit of a motley crew of bad backs and bad necks and sore shoulders. And importantly, the presence of chronic pain significantly correlated with worse scores on all of the burnout domains. So we identified pain as a driver of burnout that may be relatively specific to pathology.

• Nancy Johnson

  All those hours hunched over a microscope take their toll.

• Dr. Julia Keith

  I think ergonomically designed microscopes and workspaces are a part of the solution, but I think there's more to this pain piece than just ergonomics. I suspect that pathology is one of the most sedentary specialties of medicine. Most pathologist offices that I've seen are all set up in the same way. Pathologists have their microscopes and their computers side by side, where they work all day in a seated position. And I would encourage our listeners to be creative about trying to introduce movement into their daily workflow.

• Nancy Johnson

  For more of Dr. Keith's findings and recommendations, you'll find a link to the full interview in our show notes. And finally, it's March. And spring is right around the corner. What better time to renew your CAP membership? The CAP provides connection to a vast community of peers, ample opportunities to sharpen your skills and stay up to date with developments in the field, and the ability to contribute to the advancement of pathology through the CAP's advocacy efforts. Head over to the Join and Renew tab under Member Resources on the CAP homepage. to renew your membership today. And that does it for us today. Watch your email inbox for more news like this in the CAP's Advocacy Newsletter every Tuesday and our Weekly Edition Newsletter on Thursdays. We're back Monday at 5 a.m. Eastern for another episode of The Daily Edition. I'm Nancy Johnson. Have a great day.