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Assign BSI IDs Tool

By Archive User posted 08-14-2015 11:22

  

     Possibly the single most important thing that successful specimen tracking depends on is the ability to uniquely identify every single piece of biomaterial that moves through a specimen handling facility. No amount of organization, technology, or man power can guarantee smooth tracking or auditing if specimens lack an ID which differentiates them from potentially thousands of other specimens moving through a lab. It can be challenging creating and maintaining unique identification without the proper tools. Furthermore, should a system for assigning unique ID’s fail, the consequences can be chaotic and difficult to resolve.

     The key to managing this pain point is having access to system functionality that not only generates completely unique identification but that also employs safeguards guaranteeing that duplicate ID’s can never be assigned to different specimens. This is exactly what BSI’s ‘Assign BSI IDs’ tool does.

     To begin, every specimen that gets entered into BSI must be assigned such an identifier called a ‘BSI ID’. In fact, an electronic record of a specimen cannot be created without this identification. BSI uses this ID to facilitate the electronic processing of individual specimens in addition to storing a comprehensive amount of history and specimen attribute data. BSI IDs can be used to track parent/child lineage, to report on a huge set of current and history data, and even to indicate specimen attributes such as material type or association with a particular study.

The BSI ID is composed of a Sample ID and Sequence ID for which each database can specify a preferred alpha-numeric format. The Sample ID typically indicates a particular material taken from an individual subject at a unique point in time, while the Sequence ID identifies each division from that sample.

     The Assign BSI ID tool provides the user with options for designating alpha characters in the Sample ID, and a starting point for the system to begin searching for the next available Sample and Sequence numbers. The user can also specify grouping fields so that BSI respects values such as Date Drawn or Subject ID when assigning BIS IDs. The tool then searches the Database and returns only the next available Sample and Sequence number that have not already been assigned to other specimens. Should a user manually override the system generated ID’s or neglect to use the tool at all and assign existing BSI IDs to new specimens, the system will not allow these electronic records to be committed.

     The Assign BSI Id tool makes it quick and easy to assign an incredibly important piece of data to every single specimen that is processed. By utilizing certain user preferences, the entire process of assigning BSI ID’s can even be condensed into just a few clicks of the mouse. Make sure to check out this critical and user-friendly functionality next time you visit a BSI Data Entry editor!

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