Improving Clinical Diagnostic Technology

Q: Last year, you said you wanted to increase your market share in Mexico and expand in Latin America. How is that going?

A: GDA is acquiring companies to continue its inorganic growth and consolidate the group in the Mexican market. We are working to standardize and increase the efficiency of the three companies that we have acquired in the last two and a half years. We have achieved a standardization of 75 percent of our back-office operations and we expect to soon operate our four processing centers as a single one. Also, we are in the process of purchasing companies that will be added to GDA in the years to come.

Q: What technologies does GDA use to be competitive in the market and adapt to Industry 4.0?

A: Seventy percent of critical clinical decisions rest on one or more test considerations, so now more than ever accuracy in lab diagnostics is an important issue. Our central clinical laboratory will be the national center for all our operations and it is going to be a fully automatized and digitalized platform with Abbott’s FDA-cleared Alinity diagnostic system, which provides diagnostics screening for immunoassay, clinical chemistry, hematology, blood and plasma screening and molecular diagnostics.

We will be the only clinical laboratory in Mexico with this technology. When the lab is completed in December, GDA will become a regional leader in clinical diagnostic technology. Also, GDA’s laboratory will be able to perform PCR tests for genetic testing in real time, so we are going to considerably expand our portfolio of services and coverage for clinical tests. Our next goal is to make this technology available to more Mexicans. We are working with the public sector to make the investment between us and the government economically viable to provide firstworld solutions to Mexico.

Q: How is GDA planning to implement new diagnostic technologies to maximize their potential?

A: Technology is the basis of our comprehensive plan but we also want to accompany this development with campaigns focused on preventive healthcare. In Mexico there is an incidence of diseases derived from an alteration in the metabolic index, which is why our campaigns are designed to encourage the participation of more people to perform screening tests. We are also moving into other areas, such as allergies and cardiovascular diseases with prevention campaigns and clinical diagnostic services.

Q: How does GDA see the future development of clinical diagnostics in Mexico?

A: GDA will leverage the system to conduct diagnostic testing, which guides a high percentage of critical clinical decisions. Global testing volumes are rising due to an aging population, the growing management of diseases and increased access to healthcare. At the same time, healthcare systems are facing pressures to perform testing as efficiently as possible with limited resources in staff and space, while also reducing costs. Our technology allows us to stand out in a sector of high clinical competitiveness in which the speed of delivery is no longer the only attribute of differentiation. Improving the quality of diagnosis in Mexico becomes a transforming factor for the health sector and lab diagnostics accuracy is more important than ever. Alinity delivers greater speed and testing productivity with a smaller footprint to help us meet higher demands and provide personalized solutions.

Q: How does GDA adapt to the changes in the provision of laboratory diagnostics?

A: The technological platform we have is the most complete in the market in the areas of biochemistry and immunology. Our competitors can offer a wide range of services but they do not have all the tests available to diagnose diseases like we do. Our technology allows us to focus on diagnosing pathologies that are affecting the health sector in Mexico. It creates a much more complete overview of diseases, their associations and molecular composition.