Medical Laboratory Observer articles from June 2008

Medical Laboratory Observer archives from June 2008

Workin' at the bloomin' bench.(From the editor)(Editorial)
June 1, 2008... Hey, for those of you laboring away at the bench this afternoon and wondering how much gas will cost later today, guess what? Miley Cyrus is writing her memoirs. At 15, she already has enough of a memoir to add an "s" and make it plural. And...

Reuse of needles in Nevada.(Readers respond)(Letter to the editor)
June 1, 2008... BRAVO! I can only hope that healthcare professionals as well as the general public are as outraged by this blatant disregard for human welfare as we are. When this story came to light, I was flabbergasted. I remember reading an expose some...

Facebook initiative motivates students to consider lab careers.(LABS ARE VITAL.COM)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... When new members join the popular social-networking site, Facebook, they are asked to list their hobbies, most stimulating classes, and favorite television programs. Based on these profiles, Labs Are Vital, a collaboration of national and...

Winners of contest speak.(LABS ARE VITAL.COM)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... For the first time, Facebook has been leveraged to recruit students to an entire industry. Students competed for scholarships by submitting videos, advertisements, or T-shirt designs that encourage others to consider careers in laboratory...

Leveraging website as a recruiting tool.(LABS ARE VITAL.COM)(Facebook Inc.)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... "Leveraging Facebook's social media network was key to the success of this recruitment initiative," says Paula Garrott, chair of CCCLW, interim director of the Natural Science Division and Chair, and associate professor emerita of the Clinical...

Next major disease developing along equator.(Global diseases)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... Next major disease developing along equator. With global databases and sophisticated computer models to analyze patterns of emerging diseases, researchers from the Consortium for Conservation Medicine at the Wildlife Trust (NY), the Institute...

Newly discovered arenavirus.(Infectious diseases)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... Newly discovered arenavirus. News-Medical.net reported on April 17 that a team of health experts from Bolivia, the U.S. Navy based in Lima, Peru; and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has named "Chapare," a previously...

C diff rivals MRSA as next deadly bacteria threat.(Infectious diseases)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... C diff rivals MRSA as next deadly bacteria threat. Clostridium difficile has long been a common, usually benign "bug" associated with simple, easily treated diarrhea in older patients in hospitals and nursing homes. About 3% of healthy adults...

Grand jury indicts man for ricin possession.(Biothreat)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... Grand jury indicts man for ricin possession. In mid-April, a Nevada federal grand jury indicted Roger Von Bergendorff, 57, on charges of possession of a biological toxin, unregistered firearms, and firearms not identified by serial number. His...

Boy or girl depends on mom's eating habits.(News)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... Boy or girl depends on mom's eating habits. Researchers at Oxford and the University of Exeter in England report in a study published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences the first evidence that a child's gender is...

American retailers to phase out BPA-tainted baby bottles.(News)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... American retailers to phase out BPA-tainted baby bottles. Toys "R" Us is phasing out all plastic baby bottles containing bisphenol A (BPA), a chemical that is facing safety questions, reports the Associated Press. The retailer says it hopes to...

Study details new molecular approach to preventing Alzheimer's.(New studies)(Brief article)
June 1, 2008... Study details new molecular approach to preventing Alzheimer's. The April 24 Washington Post reported that German researchers have developed a new approach to the possible prevention of the molecular "debris" that is associated with the...

Conferences.(Calendar)
June 1, 2008... * June 23-24. An Artel training seminar, "Pipette Quality Management Certification," is scheduled in Westbrook, ME, to address topics that include pipette ergonomics, mitigating pipette-operator variability, and pipette repair and maintenance....

An overview of current practice in hepatitis C testing.
June 1, 2008... Hepatocyte injury, commonly encountered in the practice of' medicine, can be caused by a number of diseases such as hepatitis, autoimmune disorders, and congenital or acquired disorders of metabolism, or by exposure to alcohol, chemicals, I and...

Polish up on past pestilence and present pathogens.(CLINICAL ISSUES)(Case study)
June 1, 2008... Smallpox, diphtheria, typhoid fever, polio, cholera, and tuberculosis (TB) are among the diseases that struck fear into citizens of 18th-and 19th-century America. Discovery of antibioties and antiseptic techniques in 20th-century America made...

Is your back-up power ready?(LAB MANAGEMENT)
June 1, 2008... Prior to Hurricane Katrina, most hospitals and emergency medical facilities trusted their back-up generators to provide long-term power protection. But when basements flooded, New Orleans' hospitals were without power for days. Critical...

Notes on disaster preparedness.(DISASTER PREPAREDNESS)
June 1, 2008... The East Coast has hurricanes, the Midwest tornadoes, and the West Coast has earthquakes. Up north, we have winter. Some people consider that a disaster, but it is not bad once you get used to it. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] There is one...

Notes on disaster preparedness.(DISASTER PREPAREDNESS)
June 1, 2008... Here are three essential tips that many people did not think to use until after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita hit back in 2005. Experience can be the best teacher, but these two storms were a hard lesson for first responders. * First, have...

Robin Martin nurses MST to success.(Executive snapshot)(chairman at Medical Safety Technologies Inc)(Occupation overview)
June 1, 2008... Registered nurse to CEO. Because I have always had a heart to want to help people, I chose nursing; there was no better calling than to help my fellow man. At the same time, I have a profession that will always be in demand. In addition, for...

Addressing management issues.(Management Q&A)
June 1, 2008... Co-worker's bad language Q I would appreciate advice on what to do about a co-worker cussing in the lab. To be in the same room and hear this bad language gets frustrating. A Larry Crolla advises, "Perhaps there is a Human Resources...

Manual cell count controls.(Tips from the clinical experts)
June 1, 2008... Manual cell count controls Q I can understand the need to quality control (QC) instrumentation, but why is it required to do QC on manual platelets counts, white blood cell (WBC) and red blood cell (RBC) counts, reticulocyte counts, and so...

Reporting specific gravity urine with pregnancy test.(Tips from the clinical experts)
June 1, 2008... Reporting specific gravity urine with pregnancy test Q Our current practice has been to report the urine-specific gravity with every urine pregnancy test (hCG test). This was to let the physician know this result may be falsely negative...

Lithium heparin for specimen collection.(Tips from the clinical experts)
June 1, 2008... Lithium heparin for specimen collection Q I work in a physician's office laboratory. We are trying to increase turnaround time, and I would like to use lithium heparin tubes instead of serum for pregnancy tests, as well as chemistry and...

QC assigned values from peer data.(Tips from the clinical experts)
June 1, 2008... QC assigned values from peer data Q When looking at an individual laboratory instrument's QC data and comparing that data to a control's peer-group data, what is the best way to assign the instrument mean and standard deviation (SD)? We...

CV% for ESR.(Tips from the clinical experts)
June 1, 2008... CV% for ESR Q We are interested what is stated % CV for within-run imprecision for determination of erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR). Is there any published data? If there is not such, what value should we use for evaluation of a new...

Standard of care vs. state-of-the-art technology.(Liability and the lab)
June 1, 2008... Q We have been hearing about digital pathology for tissue specimens. Is this technology now state-of-the-art for laboratories? Are we at legal risk for not investing in it? A From a legal standpoint, the relevant question is not whether it...

OSHA inspections: avoid the big guns; A "culture of safety" is your best defense.(SPECIAL FEATURE)(Occupational Safety and Health Administration)
June 1, 2008... Oh, shoot! The big guns just walked in the door. Your laboratory is the target of an Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) inspection--all because one employee (just one!) made a complaint. It does not matter what the complaint...

Tune-up for trainers: help employees stay on top of their game.(EDUCATION)
June 1, 2008... Most companies tend to ask, "What if we invest money on employee training, and our employees leave?" The cost is far greater if they do not train their employees who then stay. Organizations and managers must realize that better-trained...

Consolidate testing.(Analyzers of all types)
June 1, 2008... The UniCel DxC 880i Synchron Access clinical system is an integrated work cell, which consolidates chemistry and immunoassay testing targeted at high-volume laboratories. This system will help streamline and simplify operations. UniCel DxC 800...

Touch-screen operation.(Analyzers of all types)
June 1, 2008... The D3 is a three-part differential automatic hematology system featuring a 10-[micro]L sample size (whole blood) plus pre-diluted mode; a large color LCD touch-screen for ease of use; data management that stores up to 1,000 sample records and...

Monitor hepatitis C.(Analyzers of all types)
June 1, 2008... The VERSANT Molecular System has been approved for use with the VERSANT HCV RNA 3.0 assay for management of HCV-infected patients undergoing antiviral therapy. This system gives labs greater throughput and less hands-on time, maximizing...

High throughput, fully automated.(Analyzers of all types)
June 1, 2008... The STA-R Evolution is a high throughput coagulation analyzer that combines patented viscosity-based clot detection with simultaneous measurement of clotting, chro-mogenic, and immunological assays. It has a large capacity--up to 220 primary...

Adaptable to everyday needs.(Analyzers of all types)
June 1, 2008... The Freedom EVOlyzer is a dedicated platform for automating microplate-based ELISAs, delivering accurate and reliable results with high efficiency. The instrument was created to increase workflow productivity and can be adapted to the changing...

Reduce manual intervention.(Analyzers of all types)
June 1, 2008... The XE-5000 Automated Hematology Analyzer represents an enhanced, high-throughput analyzer that provides 31 whole-blood reportable parameters including advanced clinical parameters and a body-fluid specific mode. Like its other X-Series...

Accurate and reliable results.(Analyzers of all types)
June 1, 2008... The Poly-Chem System is a bench-top analyzer, with state-of-the-art electronics, makes operation simple and efficient. This analyzer incorporates an integral ISE unit for ion-selective electrode determinations and a data-management system,...

Portable system, rapid results.(Analyzers of all types)
June 1, 2008... The GEM PCL Plus Coagulation Laboratory is a portable, whole-blood coagulation system designed to provide rapid results for PT, PT-Citrate, APTT, ACT-LR, and ACT tests. It is the ideal solution for laboratory and point-of-care testing. Add the...

Newly developed kit.(Industry spotlight)
June 1, 2008... The D3 DFA Chlamydiae Culture Confirmation Kit for the detection of chlamydia in cell culture features a blend of newly developed monoclonal antibodies that detect the presence of all 15 Chlamydia trachomatis serovars, as well as Chlamydophilia...

Digital slide solution.(Industry spotlight)
June 1, 2008... The MIRAX MICRO digital slide scanner offers a workflow-centric software solution that is developed to meet the needs of pathologists. This scanner enables users to create high-quality digital slides when using high-end microscopes made by this...

Many LIS choices.(Industry spotlight)
June 1, 2008... The wide variety of laboratory information systems offered by this company utilize process automation, rules-based decision-making, and robust instrument, billing, electronic medical records, and reference-lab interfaces. Designed to improve...

Detect 12 viruses.(Industry spotlight)
June 1, 2008... The xTAG Respiratory Viral Panel (RPV) is the first FDA-cleared assay to simultaneously detect and identify a dozen viruses and viral subtypes that together are responsible for more than 85% of respiratory viral infections. With a single...

HbA1c control.(Industry spotlight)
June 1, 2008... The A1c-Cellular is an HBA1c control with intact red-blood cells, is appropriate for immunoassay and ionic exchange high-performance liquid chromatography methodologies, and is assayed for several commonly used instruments. A1c-Cellular tests...

Ergonomic carts.(Industry spotlight)
June 1, 2008... The Dimension 4 Rolling Carts are constructed of D4 aluminum extrusion uprights, a welded tubular frame, support beams, and a 1-1/4" laminated work surface. Carts are available in three heights, supplied with three shelves, and designed for...

Safe and compliant tubes.(Industry spotlight)
June 1, 2008... The Safe-Wrap and Safe-Wrap Combo Blood Collection Tubes are mylar-wrapped glass capillaries that are treated with calcium-balanced lithium heparin. The puncture-resistant film minimizes risks of broken glass and is regulatory compliant. The...

From "hot to cold" catalog.(Industry spotlight)
June 1, 2008... A new Catalog of Chilling and Heating Laboratory Equipment has been released, and includes multiposition stirring hot plates, fully programmable chilling/heating HPLC-column ovens, large-surface hot plates, and more. To receive a new catalog,...

Identify risk.(Industry spotlight)
June 1, 2008... The new format of the PLAC test quickly and cost effectively measures a key marker of rupture-prone plaque. This test will run on existing equipment, significantly expanding the number of clinical and doctors' office labs that are able to offer...

Detect H pylori antibodies.(Industry spotlight)
June 1, 2008... A line of GAP (gastritis and peptic ulcer) tests used to detect antibodies specific to Helicobacter pylori (H pylori), a recognized agent in the etiology of Type B gastric and peptic ulcers in humans, are available. The kits use a simple ELISA...

Up to 53 amino acids determined.(Industry spotlight)
June 1, 2008... The Biochrom 30 physiological is a compact bench-top instrument designed for metabolic-disorder screening. The instrument's lithium high-performance columns perform a full routine analysis of physiological fluids, enabling the determination of...

Complete thyroid panel.(Industry spotlight)
June 1, 2008... A Complete Thyroid Panel is available for use with the AU3000i Immunoassay System by this company including TSH, T4, fT4, T3, fT3, and T-Uptake assays. On-board stability for thyroid assays is 28 days, and turnaround time is 28 minutes to first...

Transport specimens.(Industry spotlight)
June 1, 2008... The Elution Swab transport systems for aerobic, aerobic, and fastidious bacteria are sterile, single-sue collection packs. The swab applicator shaft is broken off at a colored breakpoint-indication line into the ElutionSwab tube of transport...

New uploading feature.(Industry spotlight)
June 1, 2008... A new uploading feature has been released for the Online Quality Assurance Program (QAP). Simply export OPTI CCA-TS or OPTI R data to compact flash card, and then upload to the QAP website. Data no longer needs to be entered manually, and...

Fast, convenient, and sensitive.(Industry spotlight)
June 1, 2008... RELY Mono Rapid Test is for the qualitative detection of infectious mononucleosis. Results are available in five minutes allowing immediate clinical decisions. Early IgM detection of mononucleosis reduces the risk of infecting others while...

MRSA superbug test.(Industry spotlight)
June 1, 2008... The Spectra MRSA Test gives accurate results in 24 hours, is ready-to-use, labor-saving, and is easily adapted in any healthcare facility. Test medium is easy to read, with MRSA appearing as distinctive dark-blue colonies. Its use can help...

Maximum hood-user protection.(Industry spotlight)
June 1, 2008... The UniFlow SE Fume Hood is designed for high efficiency, energy savings, and maximum user protection. Available in several sizes, the aerodynamic face opening with airfoil allows uniform airflow into the fume chamber. Vertical-raising viewing...

Results in less than an hour.(Industry spotlight)
June 1, 2008... The VITROS Anti-HIV 1+2 Assay runs on the VITROS ECi/EciQ Immunodiagnostic System by this company, with results readily available in less than 50 minutes, and is capable of being run in full random access with other tests, giving immediate...

Portable desktop.(Industry spotlight)
June 1, 2008... The Redi-Rite is a storage clipboard line that has an antimicrobial product protection in an opaque finish, and is made in the United States from recycled aluminum. Features include a 1.5-inch-capacity storage compartment, different sizes and...

IT assistance.(Industry spotlight)
June 1, 2008... With this company's services for data and information management, LISs, and more, IT needs can now be met in the laboratory, blood bank, and/or pathology department with data extractions, conversions, and migrations of well-known current and...

Fast, easy PCR system.(Industry spotlight)
June 1, 2008... The Raider Real-Time PCR Instrument allows for automated, microfluidic nucleic-acid amplification and detection with results available from purified nucleic acid in less than 15 minutes. The instrument is a fully integrated system with barcode...

Micro-well immunoassay.(Industry spotlight)
June 1, 2008... The TPMT Activity Immunoassay is a complete microwell immunoassay for the determination of TPMT activity in erythrocytes. No major equipment is involved, and technicians do not have to be trained and certified for HPLC or other special...

Minimal fatigue.(Industry spotlight)
June 1, 2008... The design of Ergopet Pipettors allows adjustments for maximum comfort as well as minimal arm strain and fatigue when working inside a hood or on the bench. Models are available in a range of sizes and allow users of varying heights to lower...

New fructosamine applications.(Industry spotlight)
June 1, 2008... A new reagent application has been validated for the quantitative determination of fructosamine for the AU series analyzers by this company, fructosamine gives a tighter two-to three-week evaluations in blood glucose in comparison to hemoglobin...

Eliminate off-line testing.(Industry spotlight)
June 1, 2008... The Sensititre Gram positive MIC Plates are produced for D-Test and Cefoxitin screening. The new plates allow labs to eliminate additional off-line test procedures required to detect resistant organisms in one platform, saving time and money....

Detects variant strain.(Industry spotlight)
June 1, 2008... The RealTime PCR Test is used for the detection of a new variant strain of Chlymydia trachomatis, with the m2000 real-time PCR clinical diagnostic system by this company. This assay is for the direct, qualitative detection of the plasmid DNA...

CMS reducing pay for HAC.(Washington report)(The Deficit Reduction Act )(Report)
June 1, 2008... According to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), there is significant public backing for reduction in Medicare payments for hospital-acquired conditions (e.g., methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus or MRSA, and blood or...