Biobanks are a form of Biorepository that Stores Biological Samples for Research

Posted by Ajinkya on April 5th, 2021

A biobank is a kind of private biorepository that stores medical records for future use by medical researchers. In biobank, medical records are stored electronically and can be retrieved only when needed. The records are technically maintained on computers rather than on paper. Hence, these records can be accessed easily and can also be searched and analyzed by the researchers.

Biobank has been playing an important role in medical research for many decades now. Medical institutions in different countries are taking up the job of maintaining their medical records on computers and are also making them available to the public through biobank services. Biobank has been an indispensable resource in modern medical research, aiding many categories of modern research such as genetic analysis and personalized medicine. It has also provided a vital link between scientific communities across the world.

Medical researchers can retrieve records with the help of a biobank at any point in time. These records can be used either for educational or research purposes. Medical research usually seeks out relevant records and indexes from the biobank, which can provide valuable data. Researchers also take the help of these records to check patient histories, discover disease mechanisms and build up a knowledge base about diseases. As per legal requirements, it is very essential to maintain accurate records and so, all records in the biobank are periodically reviewed and updated. Reviews are done every six months.

However, maintaining a good database does take time and effort. As and when new diseases are discovered, doctors need to update their records with the latest records available in the biobank. This task is cumbersome and time-consuming. To avoid this problem, doctors and institutions have signed agreements allowing access to patient records via online portals. Through these websites, doctors can access records of their choice from any location. The documents can then be stored either electronically or physically.

Patients can also access records from the biobank online. Under such agreements, the doctor and the patients can choose to purchase a password so that their records will only be accessible by each other. Some biobank services also allow doctors to order certain reports, which can be useful when conducting more detailed research or analysis. Reports can also be requested from other doctors via the biobank portal.

Biobank records include voice files of doctors; however, some voice files are generic and have no relation with a specific doctor. Hence, it is also possible for patients to request transcripts of certain voice conversations where they can get a better idea of the doctor's voice inflections. The most common problem that arises is the duplication of records. When the same name is used for different purposes, the same voice can be recorded. This has sometimes led to serious accidents where patients have inadvertently undergone surgery on the doctor's mistake. This problem is addressed by ensuring that all names used in voice recordings are different.

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