Medical Laboratory Observer articles from January 2007

Medical Laboratory Observer archives from January 2007

In one year and out the other.(medical laboratory organizations new year resolutions)(Editorial)
January 1, 2007... Mark Twain once bantered about New Year's Day: "Now is the accepted time to make your regular annual good resolutions. Next week, you can begin paving hell with them as usual." For years, I would write my New Year's resolutions on a small patch...

Readers respond: reconciling disparate information.(Letters to the editor)(Letter to the editor)
January 1, 2007... I always enjoy reading my copy of MLO... and always seem to learn something. I was, however, taken aback when I read your editorial in the September 2006 issue ["Globalization: the new party line," p. 4]. I agree that with the new means of...

Readers respond: collegial atmosphere challenged.(Letters to the editor)(Letter to the editor)
January 1, 2007... In reference to the MLO's Washington Report, "What HR 686 means to American patients," November 2006, p. 56, while I agree that there can never be too much oversight to ensure that each and every patient in the American healthcare system...

Polonium-120.(News)(radioactive exposure causes death)(Brief article)
January 1, 2007... Polonium-120. The recent death of Russian dissident Alexander Litvinenko due to Polonium-210 (Po-210) radiation poisoning has raised concerns regarding possible exposure to others. Three businessmen who met with Litvinenko have been...

FDA-approved diagnostics ready for use.(News)(Food and Drug Administration)(Brief article)
January 1, 2007... FDA-approved diagnostics ready for use. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the HemosIL Homocysteine assay, developed by Instrumentation Laboratory (IL), for the detection of elevated levels of L-homocysteine (Hcy) in citrated...

Prostate-cancer testing changes.(News)(Brief article)
January 1, 2007... Prostate-cancer testing changes. A new urine test available in Europe enables the differentiation of prostate cancer from an enlarged prostate. Current testing methods detect elevated prostate specific antigen (PSA) levels, which can also be...

Red Cross faces fines.(News)(Brief article)
January 1, 2007... Red Cross faces fines. The American Red Cross has been charged with violating a 2003 consent decree regarding the violation of federal blood-safety rules. The fine of $5.7 million will be added to $10 million in previous FDA penalties and...

Avian flu update.(Global diseases)(Brief article)
January 1, 2007... Avian flu update. The incidents of H5N1 in 2006 are 111, with 76 fatalities. On Nov. 25, South Korea confirmed its first case of infected poultry in three years, resulting in the culling of 5.3 million birds. Scientists, meanwhile, believe they...

Conferences.(The Observatory)(Brief article)(Calendar)
January 1, 2007... Feb. 19-23. The 2007 Public Health Preparedness Summit will be held at the Hilton Washington in Washington, DC. The conference offers interactive sessions, hands-on learning workshops, and networking opportunities for public healthcare...

Laboratory-based investigations of IM and Epstein-Barr virus.(COVER STORY)(Infectious mononucleosis)(Cover story)
January 1, 2007... Infectious mononucleosis (IM) also known as mono or glandular fever, is a clinical syndrome caused by Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), the fourth human herpes virus. EBV is a member of the herpes-virus family--a gamma herpes virus, in fact--and...

CE test on LABORATORY-BASED INVESTIGATIONS OF IM AND EBV.(CONTINUING EDUCATION)(Epstein-Barr virus)(Infectious mononucleosis)
January 1, 2007... MLO and Northern Illinois University (NIU), DeKalb, IL, are co-sponsors in offering continuing education units (CEUs) for this issue's article on LABORATORY-BASED INVESTIGATIONS OF IM AND EBV. CEUs or contact hours are granted by the College of...

Bedside barcoding for the blood bank.(CLINICAL ISSUES)
January 1, 2007... Barcodes have become the standard means of identification in many industries ever since one appeared on a package of Wrigley's gum sold in Ohio in June 1974. So, why have hospitals been so slow to embrace a technology made popular at the same...

Be middleware conversant.(LAB MANAGEMENT)(dialogue with Mark Ballard and Paula Lancaster of Mid American Clinical Laboratories )(Interview)
January 1, 2007... What do you get when you cross a pathology group and a national reference laboratory? If you are lucky, you get Mid American Clinical Laboratories (MACL) in Indianapolis. In a conversation at the 2006 Executive War College on Lab & Pathology...

Deborah Neff aims to move Pathwork into the clinical lab.(Executive snapshot)
January 1, 2007... The normalization challenge. Microarrays, which enable the expression of vast numbers of genes to be analyzed at the same time, offer great potential for solving complex cancer-focused medical problems. There are multiple challenges, however,...

Primer for selecting lab equipment.(SPECIAL FEATURE)
January 1, 2007... As any clinical laboratory scientist or manager can attest, automated equipment is an essential component of every modern laboratory's operation. The importance of the equipment utilized within a lab is second to its workforce, and special care...

Addressing management issues.(Management Q&A)
January 1, 2007... Work group does not communicate Q For six months, I have been the lab manager for a very non-cohesive group. The previous manager was not particularly involved with daily operations, so the group is used to having free rein. Not one...

Answering your questions; VRSA screening tests.(Tips from the clinical experts)(vancomycin-resistant S aureus)
January 1, 2007... Q We would appreciate your advice and comments regarding screening for VRSA (vancomycin-resistant S aureus). The current concern is that automated systems are not reliable, nor is disc diffusion appropriate, and the Centers for Disease Control...

Answering your questions; support for older instruments.(Tips from the clinical experts)(Brief article)
January 1, 2007... Q Is there a provision or regulation that does not permit an instrument manufacturer to discontinue a piece of equipment and not provide a substitute or replacement if the instrument becomes non-functional? I have several lab customers who have...

Answering your questions; finger-stick fasting sample in GTT.(Tips from the clinical experts)(Brief article)
January 1, 2007... Q We do a finger-stick bedside glucose on all patients who are going to have an oral glucose-tolerance test (OGTT). If the result is above a certain level, we contact the physician before proceeding. Recently, this practice has come into...

Answering your questions; TAT for ER STAT.(Tips from the clinical experts)
January 1, 2007... Q We are having a problem with the quality-assurance (QA) person at our hospital. Each month, we have to submit quality-management results to him for the laboratory report card. The problem is he took last year's results and used them as our...

Answering your questions; is glucose drink a medication?(Tips from the clinical experts)(Column)
January 1, 2007... Q Is Glucola considered a medication and, if so, who can administer it? If you have a resource, I would really appreciate the reference. A The definition of a medication is governed by state laws. In our state, the law defines it this way:...

Answering your questions; ACT correlations with PT/PTT.(Tips from the clinical experts)(activated coagulation time)(prothrombin time)(partial thromboplastin time)(Column)
January 1, 2007... Q Are you aware of any correlation studies between the activated coagulation time (ACT) and common coagulation tests such as the prothrombin time/international normalized ratio (PT/INR) or the partial thromboplastin time (PTT)? We are planning...

Emerging issues with EMRs.(Liability and the lab)(electronic medical records)
January 1, 2007... Q Our hospital uses an entirely paperless, computer-based medical record, which allows the lab and the physician to generate trend reports and analyze data on demand only. I recently gave a deposition about the system's lab component and got...

Specimen transport products and services; 24-hour shipper.(Product focus)
January 1, 2007... The Nomadic Model E24A is a 24-hour pre-qualified shipper that features resilient expanded polystyrene (EPS) construction and is designed to protect clinical samples, reagents, tissues, and other temperature-sensitive materials. It maintains...

Specimen transport products and services; cost-effective transporter.(Product focus)
January 1, 2007... Diagna Pak AMB is a cost-effective shipper for the transport of ambient diagnostic medical specimens that features a unique 7.5"x11" polybag inner that is 95kPa tested. Each bag has the required absorbent already laminated to the inside walls...

Specimen transport products and services; maintain viability up to 72 hours.(Product focus)
January 1, 2007... BBL Port-A-Cul tubes, vials, and jars all contain a unique pre-reduced transport medium with reducing agents, and are intended for use in maintaining viability of aerobic and anaerobic microorganisms during transport from the patient to the...

Specimen transport products and services; medical-specimen delivery.(Medical Division Delivery Services)(Brief article)
January 1, 2007... Medical division delivery services provide delivery of blood work and other medical specimens promptly and securely. All drivers are trained in medical issues including temperature, timing, and public safety. Fleets of properly maintained...

Specimen transport products and services; compliance training.(Product focus)
January 1, 2007... Compliance training for Shipping Class 6.2-Infectious Substances includes Category A UN 2814 and UN 2900, Category B UN 3373, Exempt Human Specimens, and Class 9-Dry Ice. Training is available in five different options: public and private...

Specimen transport products and services; secondary watertight receptacle.(Product focus)
January 1, 2007... This two-pocket specimen bag is ideal for use as a secondary watertight receptacle according to Department of Transportation and International Air Transport Association regulations for shipping biological substances. The 95kPa-bags feature a...

Specimen transport products and services; rugged tote.(Product focus)
January 1, 2007... This Duo-Temp locking specimen tote provides both security and temperature protection to sensitive lab specimens. It comes with a U-Tech refrigerant pack to simplify shipping temperature-sensitive materials. The refrigerant pack, which is...

Software enhancements.(Industry spotlight)
January 1, 2007... Multiple software enhancements have been made to the CS152KB touch screen programmable keypad. The changes improve the user's ability to scan slides and samples while enhancing the functionality provided to store, review, edit, and download...

Hemoglobin Assay.(Industry spotlight)
January 1, 2007... The CAPILLARYS Hemoglobin Assay is designed to separate, detect, and quantify normal and variant hemoglobins. This assay has been adapted to the capillary electrophoresis system--CAPILLARYS 2--in order to provide complete automation. A...

Easy cell collection.(Industry spotlight)
January 1, 2007... Forensic Swabs make cell collection easy and accurate with a cotton tip and snap-open and -shut clear-plastic aerated cap. The certified-sterile swab is centered in the middle of the air-drying cap so it can be laid flat and transported without...

Trichomonas Rapid Test.(Industry spotlight)
January 1, 2007... The OSOM Trichomonas Rapid Test aids in the diagnosis in approximately 10 minutes for trichomonas infection. The OSOM test uses immunochromatograhic dipstick technology that detects pathogenic antigens directly from vaginal swabs. In a clinical...

Antimicrobial additive.(Industry spotlight)
January 1, 2007... BacStop is an antimicrobial additive for the TransLogic standard and Eco-Seal pneumatic-tube system carriers. This silver-ion antimicrobial agent is molded within the body of the carrier, which has been confirmed effective against more than 35...

Lab-friendly seating.(Industry spotlight)
January 1, 2007... The RhinoPlus series of chairs and stools feature steel seat pans, solid castered bases, and a urethane pad covering that withstands punctures, bleach, and most chemicals. Chairs have a three-inch pad of high-quality foam that makes them...

Ready-to-use reagent.(Industry spotlight)
January 1, 2007... The Direct TIBC reagent is designed for measuring total iron binding capacity (TIBC) directly on automated analyzers. The methodology does not require manual calculations and offers excellent precision and reliability. This reagent is...

Tissue-imaging solution.(Industry spotlight)
January 1, 2007... DMD108 is a network imaging solution, which was designed to address histopathologist's increasing workloads. It projects images directly on a monitor using a high-resolution camera and powerful image-processing software. Images can then be...

Manage supplies.(Industry spotlight)
January 1, 2007... InvMan Version 5.1 is a multiuser networked program for the rapid and accurate management of supplies, reagents, and purchase orders. It uses a portable barcode-scanner to count inventory while tracking lot numbers and expiration dates. ...

One-step screening.(Industry spotlight)
January 1, 2007... These hospital diagnostic devices are FDA-cleared one-step qualitative screening assays for the detection of drugs-of-abuse and their metabolites in human urine. Several different panels are available that test for a wide range of...

Extend lab services.(Industry spotlight)
January 1, 2007... LabPak EX Workstation enhances current or future LabPak laboratory information systems and extends laboratory services. Password protection and secure encrypted connectivity help compliance with HIPAA requirements. This system enables...

Healthcare in the 110th Congress.(Washington report)
January 1, 2007... Having gained a majority of the seats in the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate, the Democrats will now set the healthcare agenda for the 110th Congress. On a national policy basis as before 1990, it is expected that they will look...