Wimmera Health Care Group has installed a new vacuum system to help improve pathology test processing and result times.
Professor Alan Wolff, director of medical services at Wimmera Health Care Group said the new system uses pneumatic tubes and compressed air to send blood samples through to pathology.
Prof Wolff said the new system will reduce the time people spend in the emergency department by replacing a human task with a mechanical system.
"Instead of waiting for an orderly to be available to take the samples to pathology, we can now transport it immediately," Prof Wolff said.
"The pneumatic tube systems are common in larger hospitals as they increase efficiency.
"Increasing the efficiency of our busy orderly staff who have a lot of other tasks to complete is a major bonus of this system."
Prof Wolff said the changes modernised Wimmera Health Care Group’s system to be in line with other hospitals of this size.
"It is important to always look at how we can improve our systems."
The project was jointly funded with Australian Clinical Labs, the contracted pathology providers at Wimmera Health Care Group.