Clinical Pathology

Services and Departments

Main laboratory

Biochemical genetics

The biochemical genetics section of the laboratory is staffed from 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Monday-Friday to answer questions regarding genetic testing.

Blood bank/transfusion services

The transfusion services (blood bank) section is staffed by medical technologists/clinical laboratory scientists. The section is staffed 24 hours/day, 7 days/week.

Chemistry (routine)

The routine chemistry section is staffed by medical technologists/clinical laboratory scientists 24 hours/day, 7 days/week. It performs more than 2 million tests per year, including complete and basic metabolic panels, therapeutic drugs, cardiac assays and drugs of abuse.

Chemistry (special)

The special chemistry section is staffed from 7 a.m.-5:30 p.m. seven days a week by medical technologists/clinical laboratory scientists. It performs more than 100,000 tests per year, including allergy testing, electrophoresis, immunofixation, sweat tests, rejection drug assays and cancer markers.

Hematology/coagulation/urinalysis

The clinical hematology section is staffed by medical technologists/clinical laboratory scientists 24 hours/day, 7 days/week. It performs more than 1.5 million tests per year, including complete blood counts (CBC) and differentials, body fluid counts and differentials, sickle cell screens, reticulocyte analysis, erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), and hemoglobin electrophoresis.

Microbiology

The microbiology section is staffed by medical technologists/clinical laboratory scientists 24 hours/day, 7 days/week. It performs more than 155,000 cultures, organism identifications and susceptibility tests per year, including blood cultures. In addition to standard bacteriology, the laboratory provides full-service diagnostic testing in mycology, mycobacteriology and parasitology.

Point of care (POC) testing

The POC section is staffed by medical technologists responsible for 162 glucose meters, 19 blood gas and CoOx analyzers, 44 I-Stat meters performing Chem 8+ panels, BNP, B-HCG, Troponin I, activated clotting time, and blood gases with lactate. Other POC instruments test for PTINR, hemoglobin A1C, finger stick hemoglobin, urine dipsticks, oximetry, activated clotting time and heparin concentration. Manual kits for urine pregnancy, influenza A/B, RSV and Strep A testing are monitored. Provider-performed microscopy assessments that include wet preps, fern testing and KOH testing are provided.

Serology

The serology/molecular section is staffed by medical technologists/clinical laboratory scientists 24 hours/day, 7 days/week. It performs more than 135,000 tests per year, including serology tests and molecular tests. Molecular testing includes HIV, CMV and HCV viral loads, HPV, MRSA,GBS and C. difficile toxin. Additional molecular testing for chlamydia/GC, trichomonas, flu, RSV, meningitis/encephalitis, and upper respiratory panels also are available.

Toxicology

The toxicology division is the only clinical laboratory in the state that provides comprehensive toxicology testing. It is staffed from 7 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Monday-Friday with personnel on call after hours and weekends for emergency requests. The division offers a comprehensive test menu, including blood lead, comprehensive drug screens, confirmation of drugs of abuse by GC/MS, ethylene glycol and volatile alcohols (methanol, ethanol, acetone and isopropanol).