Carson Valley Health (CVH), a leading critical access hospital in Northern Nevada, today announced a landmark achievement in medical diagnostics. CVH has become the first healthcare facility in the United States with the state-of-the-art Atellica® CI Analyzer featuring Atellica Integrated Automation (AIA) from Siemens Healthineers.
This historic milestone is another part of CVH’s ongoing expansion, which includes a commitment to bringing world-class technology to the region.
A Decade of Partnership and Innovation
Carson Valley Health has been a trusted partner of Siemens Healthineers for over 10 years. The transition to the Atellica® portfolio represents a massive leap forward in laboratory capabilities, moving from manual processes to a highly automated, intelligence-driven diagnostic ecosystem.
“As the first in the nation to launch this specific configuration, we are proving that rural healthcare can be cutting-edge healthcare,” said Jeff Prater, CEO. “Our patients deserve the fastest, most accurate results available. This technology allows our lab to operate at a level typically only seen in major metropolitan medical centers.”
Revolutionizing the Laboratory Experience
The laboratory suite at CVH features the Atellica CI Analyzer and the Atellica Solution Sci configuration, both equipped with integrated decappers and sealers. This specialized automation is managed by the Atellica Data Manager (ADM), a sophisticated informatics platform that standardizes testing and quality control.
The benefits to the community and the hospital staff are substantial:
- Increase in Testing Capacity: Clinical testing capacity has expanded by more than 2.5x per hour, drastically reducing wait times for patients.
- Expanded Testing Menu: Physicians now have access to more in-house clinical testing assays, reducing the need to send samples to outside labs and enabling faster diagnoses.
- Automation: The system automates over 25 manual tasks that previously required hands-on time from lab technologists.
- Safety & Wellness: The addition of automated decapping and sealing eliminates repetitive motion risks for staff and reduces biohazard exposure.
- Unmatched Efficiency: Hands-on daily equipment maintenance has been reduced to less than 5 minutes, allowing technologists to focus on human-centered tasks and complex patient needs.
Precision Care
As Carson Valley Health continues its expansion—including its recently designated Level IV Trauma Center—the laboratory serves as an engine of the hospital. These upgrades ensure that whether a patient is in the Emergency Room, Surgery, or a primary care clinic, their results are delivered with speed and precision.
“Standardization and clinical equivalence are the gold standards of modern medicine,” said Cheryll Butelon, Laboratory Manager. “With the Atellica CI Analyzer, we aren’t just getting new machines; we are getting a smarter, safer, and faster way to care for our patients.”
