Genelex’s progress toward eliminating adverse drug events has been honored by Seattle Business magazine with a 2014 Tech Impact Award.

At the September 18 awards event, Genelex was given the silver award in the health category of the magazine's 2014 Tech Impact Awards. Genelex joins both small and large tech luminaries, including Microsoft and T-Mobile, in being recognized as a technology leader.

“Through its genetic testing and support tools for doctors, Genelex Corporation is out to eliminate the fourth-leading cause of death in America: adverse drug reactions,” Seattle Business editors write in their October edition.

“The company’s effectiveness in tackling the issue has made it one of the fastest growing private companies in the Puget Sound region ­– and perhaps one of the most beneficial.”

Genelex Chief Operating Officer Kristine Ashcraft accepted the award, given during a reception at the Renaissance Seattle hotel.

“As a nation, we spend more on adverse drug events than we do on drugs,” Ashcraft says.

“At Genelex, we are so proud of the impact our software is having in reducing adverse drug events. But the real impact is on the thousands of patients who deserve the safest and most effective medicine that science can give them.”

The YouScript Personalized Prescribing System is designed to help physicians gain a full understanding of their patients’ genetic makeup and help avoid potential harmful drug-drug, drug-gene and drug-drug-gene interactions.

Founded in 1987 as a paternity testing laboratory, Genelex first began offering DNA drug sensitivity testing in 2000 and was a pioneer in this field, being one of the first labs to offer such services. Genelex first added the YouScript software to its testing services in 2007 and has been making strides in improving both since then, such as becoming integrated with the Allscripts electronic healthcare records system.

Read about all the Tech Impact Award winners on Seattle Business magazine’s website.