April 2009 - Posts

A Good Job
April 27, 2009 6:13 AM by Scott Warner

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) report on unemployment is enlightening. A table lists different categories of the unemployed. The "official" rate is a percent total of the civilian labor force. That's 8.5% as of March. But the total including "marginally Read More...

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Schedule of Choice
April 22, 2009 4:44 AM by Scott Warner

Too many days, too many hours, too many weekends, or simply too many for some and less for others. Your time at home with family is determined by when you are supposed to be working. The burning question is Why can't I have the work schedule I choose? Read More...

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Tell A Story
April 17, 2009 7:07 AM by Scott Warner

National Medical Laboratory Professionals Week ( NMLPW ) is the fourth week of every April. That's next week. This year's theme is "Laboratory Professionals Get Results." We are, of course, much more. For the last year, I've met with my staff weekly to Read More...

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Because You Provide a Service
April 13, 2009 4:41 AM by Scott Warner

There are two answers to any question about customer service. The first is Because we provide a service , which defines it from the company's point of view. The second is nearly identical: Because you provide a service. Here's a scenario at two hospitals: Read More...

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A New Marker
April 8, 2009 4:26 AM by Scott Warner

When I spoke with the diaDexus rep the other day on the telephone, he told me the PLAC test , a new test that measures lipoprotein-associated phospholipase A 2 (Lp-PLA 2 ), is being done in forty labs across the US, with another added every two weeks. Read More...

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Tune It Out
April 3, 2009 6:25 AM by Scott Warner

Workload, telephone calls, STAT orders, interruptions from colleagues, instrument breakdowns, the boss yelling, patient complaints, the frequency of abnormalities and random error conspire in infinitely complex ways to drive us crazy. How do we keep distractions Read More...

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