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What is the Best LIS for Molecular Testing Labs?
June 11, 2025
Whether the last time you looked into a new laboratory information system (LIS) was 10 years ago or a few short months ago, forget most of what you’ve been told. Traditional LIS systems and molecular lab testing software are now completely obsolete.
Nearly everything about the molecular laboratory ecosystem has changed, including clinical lab workflow, service delivery, reporting structures, lab instrumentation, laboratory billing reimbursement procedures, third-party interoperability, and more.
Modern molecular lab software is equipped to navigate today’s dynamic environment with greater agility, precision, and confidence than traditional clinical laboratory management solutions.
In addition to this constant change, molecular LIS labs are beginning to play a much more prominent role in healthcare delivery. No longer the workhorse tucked away in the hospital basement, they are now a vital, visible part of the healthcare package.
Moreover, they require the best LIS software that goes beyond basic order capture and result delivery. They need advanced laboratory information systems that ensure flexibility within and beyond the lab’s network, feature specimen lifecycle sample tracking and support, promote scalability and efficiency, and enhance the lab’s value as a revenue center and care partner.
Learn More: Four Game-Changing Business Strategies to Improve Laboratory Processes
“Molecular LIS labs play a vital role in today’s precision-focused medical world,” stated LigoLab CEO Suren Avunjian. “Rapid advances in biochemical and molecular genetics are driving precision medicine forward, which is a big reason we’re seeing increased demands on our molecular LIS partners. We understand their unique needs and have created LIS software that is not only agile but also helps these labs scale their operations efficiently.”
The ability of these labs to meet unprecedented demand and continue scaling during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic was a testament to the power and flexibility of the all-in-one LigoLab medical LIS & lab RCM platform.
“The fastest-growing laboratories in the U.S. during the pandemic were LigoLab molecular LIS clients,” said Avunjian. “Every one of our molecular lab partners scaled their testing volumes exponentially—some experienced explosive growth.”
Learn More: Molecular Labs Hold the Key to Evidence-Based Precision Medicine
The Role of Precision Medicine and Diagnostic Lab Software in the Growth of Molecular Testing Labs
At the intersection of data and patient specimens, labs with molecular lab testing software are becoming the de facto interpreters of data-rich biospecimens.
Within the practice of precision medicine, this elevated role is helping clinicians form a better understanding of clinical pathways and treatment options, including options for drug selection, specialized therapeutics, and more.
As diagnostic tests grow increasingly sophisticated, the resulting data has become more complex, often to the point where physicians and their staff struggle to interpret it. This makes molecular LIS laboratories the natural experts to guide healthcare providers in understanding the significance and clinical relevance of these results.
“When we say that molecular LIS labs are coming out of the basement, this is what we mean,” said Avunjian. “Today’s labs go well beyond traditional collection and reporting. Thanks to advanced molecular lab testing software, they are now often part of the broader diagnostics and treatment team.”
However, not all molecular LIS labs find the opportunity to elevate their role within the healthcare ecosystem enticing, and some lab directors and managers resist adding more strain to their current LIS system workloads.
However, most recognize the value of advancing medicine, and forward-thinking directors and managers are turning to advanced molecular lab software platforms for operations and support.
With future-ready medical LIS laboratory solutions (like LigoLab's comprehensive and highly configurable informatics platform), opportunistic lab operators can now utilize emerging digital technologies and the rapid growth of patient consumerism to open up new revenue sources.
Expanding Access with At-Home Direct-to-Consumer Lab Testing
One way to accomplish this is by offering patients direct-to-consumer lab testing and preventative screenings from the comfort of their homes.
LigoLab’s TestDirectly is a web portal that creates direct-to-consumer labs by fully supporting at-home testing and laboratory services. This includes the online ordering of a test kit, the shipping of the test kit to the patient’s home, the laboratory’s receipt of the patient’s specimen after collection, the processing of the specimen, the automated delivery of the test results (consumer lab reports) back to the patient, and the videoconferencing and scheduling of consultations if needed.
“TestDirectly supports any kind of direct-to-consumer lab testing and serves as a marketplace for enhanced and specialized laboratory services,” said Avunijian. “The TestDirectly web portal enables direct-to-consumer labs to gain visibility and grow their brands as they align with consumers and provide them with a streamlined and unified experience.”
Learn More: Highlighting the Versatility of the TestDirectly Direct-to-Consumer Lab Testing Portal
How Labs Find More Value with LigoLab’s Molecular Lab Testing Software Solution
Avero Diagnostics is a molecular LIS lab that experienced unprecedented growth during the pandemic. The LigoLab-Avero partnership dates back several years, with Avero first licensing LigoLab's lab information system solution before also licensing LigoLab's lab revenue cycle management module a few years later.
Avero made the switch to take full advantage of LigoLab’s all-in-one pathology lab software and its unified solution, which seamlessly integrates the LIS system and laboratory billing workflows to create a single, powerful infrastructure. By removing data silos and enabling billing to begin at the point of order entry within the LIS, LigoLab helps labs streamline operations, improve transparency, and boost performance.
Just a few months after implementation, Avero experienced significant improvements in workflow efficiency and data accuracy, alongside a 35% increase in net collections, a gain that has remained steady over time.
Below is a link to a white paper highlighting Avero's sustained growth.
White Paper: Leveraging LIS & RCM Integration to Improve the Laboratory Billing Process
Molecular Lab Software that Ensures Agility in a Changing World
As mentioned earlier, traditional laboratory information system software is no longer an option in today’s clinical testing lab environment. Labs must deploy molecular lab software that can connect all corners of the diagnostic landscape, including instrumentation, clinical laboratory management analytics, robust decision support, effective quality controls, third-party interoperability with electronic health record (EHR) systems, decision population health tools, and other laboratory software systems.
Legacy LIS systems lack flexibility and are unlikely to expand a lab’s ability to network within the healthcare community or enhance its diagnostic lab software offerings as new options develop.
Learn More: Comparing LigoLab Informatics Platform with Legacy Laboratory Information System Software
“When molecular LIS laboratories shop for laboratory information systems, they should carefully consider whether or not they can provide reliable interoperability and interface with an ever-changing array of healthcare partners and other mission-critical technologies,” added Avunjian. “It’s not only about what LIS systems can do today but also about how future-ready they are. LigoLab was built for today and tomorrow.”
Unlock the Full Potential of Your Molecular Lab with LigoLab’s All-in-One Medical LIS & Lab RCM Platform
The LigoLab platform is a powerful, all-inclusive laboratory information system software solution with modules that a modern molecular lab should have to conduct specialized diagnostic testing with maximum efficiency.
This list of laboratory information system functions includes:
Unified Laboratory Workflow Management
The LigoLab platform connects every lab function within a unified LIS laboratory information system software infrastructure, ensuring end-to-end data integrity.
Specimen Management, Sample Tracking, and Patient Safety
Streamlined specimen management and sample tracking are vital for flawless laboratory operations. The LigoLab platform assigns a specimen-unique identifier as the order is placed and digitally tracks the specimen at every stage, ensuring error-free clinical laboratory management.
Quality Control and Quality Assurance
LigoLab’s Quality Control (QC) module and Quality Assurance (QA) compliance infrastructure provide support for accurate molecular lab software testing, precise report distribution, and closely monitored operations. Ligolab supports the Westgard Rules, Lean Six Sigma, and various other QC methodologies.
The QC module supports live monitoring of control data and can alert users to abnormal readings, thereby preventing instrument malfunction and erroneous test release. The QA infrastructure monitors every step of laboratory workflow management and ensures reliable and coherent operations throughout the testing process.
Learn More: A Detailed Look at How Modern Laboratory Information Systems Fully Support Quality Control
Cost Management
Cost management is critically important for clinical laboratories thanks to increasingly regulated reimbursement policies and profit erosion. LigoLab’s real-time monitoring and reporting tools enable users to easily generate important performance analytic reports that provide the valuable insight lab leadership needs to make informed business decisions.
Learn More: Mastering Real-Time Analytics in the Clinical Laboratory: A Comprehensive Guide
Laboratory Information System Interoperability
LigoLab features an open architecture lab information system platform with a proprietary interface engine. The interface engine provides maximum interoperability, enabling the LigoLab platform to seamlessly connect to all analyzers, EHRs, and third-party plug-ins. This includes internal networking and connections to external entities, such as laboratory billing services, the Tumor Registry, and state reporting agencies.
The interface engine supports all standard interchange protocols, including FHIR, HL7, XML, X12, CSV, PDF, Flat File, ASTM, and Restful API.
Optimize Clinical Laboratory Management and Scale Your Business
LigoLab continuously develops new features, and enhancements are regularly added to the LIS laboratory information system platform. By combining deep domain expertise, proven best practices, and continuous customer feedback, the LIS company delivers a platform that optimizes workflows, boosts productivity, and enables its lab partners to scale their operations with speed and confidence.
Regulatory Compliance Made Easy
Compliance without a flexible diagnostic lab software platform is quite challenging and labor-intensive. LigoLab offers specialized tools that reduce audit risk and revenue loss. Users can effectively operate within the guidelines of CAP, CLIA, HIPAA, and other regulatory agencies to mitigate compliance concerns and avoid penalties.
Support for Consumerism
With LigoLab, medical laboratories can directly connect with patients while expanding laboratory services. The TestDirectly direct-to-consumer lab testing web portal makes this possible by replacing paper forms and manual processes with a simplified digital workflow that starts with patient self-registration and eliminates the potential for human errors, order entry bottlenecks, reporting delays, and patient and provider frustration.
The cloud-based portal is the key to unlocking laboratory testing capacity and turnaround times, all while enhancing the patient experience.
TestDirectly supports all forms of specimen collection (at-home, drive-through, walk-up, concierge, etc.) and all types of direct-to-consumer lab testing.
Questions About LigoLab’s Molecular Lab Testing Software Solutions?
LigoLab is a laboratory information system software company recognized for its strong commitment to customer partnerships. Its enterprise-grade SaaS platform delivers a comprehensive solution that fully manages all lab informatics needs, empowering lab leadership with a robust, all-in-one workflow system that operates independently of third-party vendors.
Is your molecular lab ready to experience a digital transformation with a future-ready laboratory information system?
If yes, now’s the time to start a conversation with a LigoLab product specialist.
Connect Me with a LigoLab Product Specialist!
