Compelling evidence exists that conflict and communication problems occur between nursing home staff and family members of residents. However, few interventions have been documented that simultaneously address the needs of both groups. The Partners in Caregiving program was created to train staff and family members in communication techniques and conflict resolution skills. Through a joint meet...

We compared centralized vs distributed methods for delivering "stat" test results for blood gas, glucose, and electrolyte assays. The parameters for comparison were as follows: (a) laboratory turnaround time (TAT), (b) therapeutic TAT, and (c) staff satisfaction. Therapeutic TAT, defined as the time from the initiating order to the receipt of the result and the implementation of any indicated c...

There continues to be an unrelenting rise in the volumes of laboratory tests ordered in medicine, which is both expensive and has the potential for over-investigation. We performed a quantitative, observational, cross-sectional study of staff with the authority to initiate a laboratory test, using a voluntary, anonymous questionnaire. Our aim was to assess the awareness of and attitudes towards...

BACKGROUND Public health laboratories form the foundation on which today's clinical laboratory practice in Cameroon is built. The advent of the Strengthening Laboratory Management Toward Accreditation (SLMTA) programme in 2009 empowered the Bamenda Regional Hospital Laboratory (BRHL) to improve its working culture, practices and management. OBJECTIVES To evaluate the results of SLMTA implemen...

OBJECTIVE To implement a mentored laboratory quality stepwise implementation (LQSI) programme to strengthen the quality and capacity of Cambodian hospital laboratories. METHODS We recruited four laboratory technicians to be mentors and trained them in mentoring skills, laboratory quality management practices and international standard organization (ISO) 15189 requirements for medical laborato...

An explanation of Conflicts of Interest, why they must be avoided, and guidance for doing so. • Lincoln Laboratory is contractually required to be free of actual or apparent conflicts of interest. Conflicts of interest undermine the objectivity, independence, and integrity of the Laboratory's work. • Therefore, Laboratory staff shall avoid situations that cause actual or apparent conflicts of i...

The International Standard Organization (ISO) 15189 accreditation has raised new enthusiasm among laboratory professionals. On the one hand, it satisfies the desire to undertake a pathway attesting the high degree of quality of laboratory performance measured according to the important role of Laboratory Medicine throughout patient care. On the other hand, it allows demonstrating how the compet...

The clinical microbiology laboratory is an essential component of an effective infection control program. Laboratory personnel have a broad range of technologies, from traditional methods of detecting and identifying organisms to modern molecular typing methods, that they can use to support and enhance the efforts of the infection control staff. If the infection control team applies these techn...

Numerous species of amphibians are frequently utilized as animal models in biomedical research. Despite their relatively common occurrence as laboratory animals, the regulatory guidelines that institutional animal care and use committees (IACUCs) must employ provide little in the way of written standards for ectothermic animals. Yet, as vertebrates, laboratory amphibians are covered by the Nati...