As part of National Medical Laboratory Week, the InterHospital Laboratory Partnership (IHLP) is celebrating 65 years of moving healthcare through regional partnerships with the role of medial laboratory professionals.
The longest standing laboratory partnership in the country, the IHLP has grown to serve Huron, Perth, Grey, Wellington and Bruce counties, while membership includes Hanover and District Hospital, Huron Health System, Huron Perth Healthcare Alliance, Listowel Wingham Hospitals Alliance, South Bruce Grey Health Centre, and Wellington Health Care Alliance.
Between the six healthcare organizations are a total of 16 rural hospital sites that employ approximately 200 medical laboratory professionals (pathologists, MLTs, MLAs and administrative staff).
"The IHLP is a cornerstone of collaborative healthcare delivery,” said Dr. Christopher Tran, pathologist and IHLP medical laboratory director. “By sharing resources and technical expertise, we can ensure patients have access to a wide range of high-quality tests. This would otherwise be difficult to achieve if each lab was to function individually.”
The IHLP labs performed over 2.2 million laboratory tests in 2023.
“Our dedicated team of laboratory professionals work tirelessly behind the scenes to ensure patients get accurate and timely results,” adds Dana Howes, CEO of Hanover & District Hospital and the chair of the IHLP CEO council. “We greatly appreciate the work they do, to improve the health of our rural communities and wish them a Happy National Medical Laboratory Week!”
More information about the InterHospital Laboratory Partnership can be found here.
