HUP Launches PPID & Bedside Label Printing

InFocus  •  Summer 2025 Issue  •  September 12, 2025

On Tuesday, July 22, 2025 at 10:00 am, HUP went live with PennChart Electronic Positive Patient Identification (PPID) and Bedside Label Printing, an initiative to improve patient safety and specimen collection quality and efficiency. Over the past 18 months, Pathology and Laboratory Medicine led the initiative to bring lab label printing at the patient’s bedside in conjunction with HUP Executive Leadership, PMO, Nursing and DTS/IS. During Phase one of this initiative, over 700 lab label printers were deployed and are currently being used in all HUP Main and Clifton Center inpatient units (except L&D, ORs, and PEC), ED, EDOU, and HUP Clifton Peri-Op and PACU. All central printers that were once in these units were replaced with either an in-room Zebra printer OR a mobile Honeywell printer ensuring that lab labels are printed at the patient’s bedside. With this change, nurses and phlebotomists are now required to scan the patient’s wristband before printing the labels.

A Go-live Command Center was opened from July 22 through August 1 (all shifts) to review any calls and tickets submitted in the Help Desk self-service portal. A subset of staff was on site to provide end-user support. In addition, representatives from both Honeywell and Zebra were on site to assist with any printer related issues. Our Point of Care team was very instrumental in providing assistance to the users and we are grateful for their help and support. Overall, the implementation of this new change was a success and as a result of this project, HUP is currently meeting the new AABB Standards and The Joint Commission’s 2025 Patient Safety Goals. Many thanks to everyone involved and we look forward to phase two of this initiative.

-- Authored by Samirah Lawson