Case Study: The Doctors Laboratory (TDL) achieves data-driven training visibility and faster portfolio completion with Totara

The Doctors Laboratory Build a Data-driven Business With Totara's LMS

The Doctors Laboratory (TDL) is a medically led clinical diagnostics provider in the UK, handling around 55 million results a year. Many biomedical scientists at TDL complete long, work-based professional qualifications using paper portfolios, and progress was tracked by spreadsheet and trainer estimates — a slow, error-prone process that left progress unclear and made it hard to identify trainees who were falling behind.

TDL rebuilt the portfolio as a course in Totara Learn, using module-based one-question quizzes for sign-offs and feedback fields to record issue and target completion dates and assessment outcomes. Because Totara is open source, they integrated it with Tableau to produce visual progress bars with a “today” marker and made reports available to trainers. The result was better visibility of portfolios, earlier identification and support for at-risk staff, and stronger staff development that supports recruitment and retention.

The Doctors Laboratory (TDL)

Wendy Leversuch

Head of Scientific Training