As clinical laboratorians we are taught the importance of the information we provide for clinical decision making.  Technology has made it possible to use small sample sizes to generate ''numbers'' in a very short period of time. Sometimes physicians (and laboratorians) get so seduced by the speed that we forget that numbers are only ...

When a night shift tech resigned for another position I was told, “If you can’t hire someone, just rotate your day shift through nights.” That is a possibility, of course, but there is no “just” about it. According to a 1981 article published on the US Department of Labor web site, “shift work” is defined as between seven P.M. and seven A.M. ...

When I told nurses we would throw unlabeled specimens in the trash and then telephone them with the news, outrage ensued. “How dare you!” was the general tone. Perhaps, they believed this was their decision. At least, I played fair by giving notice. Laboratory policies and procedures need criteria for specimen rejection. CLIA interpretive ...

I just saw the blockbuster movie Contagion and must say I was pretty impressed. When I watch a medical-themed movie, I always look at it with a critical eye. How factual is it? Is it authentic in terms of scenarios, equipment, procedures and vocabulary?I look for how realistically roles are portrayed. For example I tend to roll my eyes and become ...

First, it was San Francisco banning Happy Meal toys. And now it looks like New York wants to follow suit. A time.com article recently stated: ''New York City Council member Leroy G. Comrie, Jr., of Queens is leading the charge to ban kid-friendly toys from any fast-food meal that doesn't meet certain nutritional standards, arguing that the plastic ...

We’ve all added a comment to a report like the following: “Specimen hemolyzed. Results may be falsely elevated.” A disclaimer can be added “just in case,” per lab policy or package insert, or to cover a tech’s behind. Sometimes, we let ourselves be bullied into giving a result with a disclaimer. We assume the physician can interpret disclaimed ...

It was 4 months after my mother was diagnosed with brain cancer, and for someone who had recently had brain surgery, she was doing quite well: walking, talking, even driving herself to her own radiation appointments. In August, my dad decided we should take a family vacation to Ocean City, MD. I had just started working for ADVANCE and didn't ...

In a survey conducted by the CDC, the government recently found methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is declining in healthcare settings. The CDC found a 28 percent drop in MRSA cases contracted in hospitals from 2005-2008. Although authorities aren't completely certain why there has been a decline, more vigilant safety practices ...

Today the FDA told LabCorp, Burlington, NC, that it is violating the law by marketing its OvaSure test without regulatory approval. The FDA said in a letter that if LabCorp did not stop selling the ovarian cancer test, it could face seizure, injunction or monetary fines. Click here for more information. The OvaSure test had previously been under ...

According to a recent study by the Center for Studying Health System Change, Americans are increasingly using the Internet to get health information. In 2007, almost 58 percent of the U.S. population--or more than 122 million people--sought health information from sources other than their doctor, as compared to only about 38 percent or ...