Laboratory

Services


The Medical Laboratory is an essential department of Vernon Memorial Healthcare providing service throughout the hospital and clinics 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The lab reaches every area of the hospital: each nursing unit, patient room, department and clinic with quiet efficiency. Many patient diagnoses, from strep throat to leukemia, are largely based on lab results, which makes our quality critical.

VMH’s highly skilled technologists, technicians and lab assistants make up the laboratory team, making sure specimens are identified properly and results are reported accurately. They work together to determine the presence, extent or absence of disease and provide valuable data needed to evaluate the effectiveness of treatment. Each year, the VMH lab performs more than 210,000 tests on more than 22,400 patients, with many unique procedures available.

ORDERING LABS & LAB RESULTS

How are lab tests ordered?
The laboratory personnel must first have a healthcare provider order to have the appropriate specimens collected and tests performed. We will ask you to register prior to having any testing done to assure appropriate information release and billing procedures are followed. Your test results will be sent to the person or organization you indicated upon registering.

Do I need to make an appointment for lab work?

Yes. Call 608-637-2101 to schedule an appointment (M-F: 7 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., Sat/Sun 8 a.m. to Noon)

Can I get copies of my lab results?
Yes, copies may be obtained from the Health Information Management department at VMH, provided that test specimens were collected at VMH. Otherwise, contact your healthcare providers for copies of the results. Lab results may also appear in MyChart.

Lab Tests Available

The lab’s chemistry section is the most highly automated. Here, tests are run for diabetes, metabolic disorders, thyroid, kidney, liver and heart disease, and medication levels are also routinely performed. For most tests, the blood sample is spun in a centrifuge to separate the blood cells from the serum or plasma, which is used to run the tests. Testing includes glucose, cholesterols, electrolytes and various enzymes.

To study both bacteria and viruses, many tests in microbiology have been traditionally manual procedures. While some tests such as a rapid Strep or influenza screen can be done in 15-20 minutes, some cultures may take several days or weeks, depending on how fast organisms grow. To speed up this process, the lab uses an automated blood culture system that reads the bottles every 10 minutes. When bacterial infections are found, techs perform sensitivity testing to tell physicians which drugs will work best to eliminate infection.

These lab specialists determine a patient's blood type and antibody screening, determining crossmatch compatibility for patients needing blood transfusions using Gel technology.

The highly automated hematology area of the lab is responsible for conducting tests on whole blood and other body fluids. Tests include hemoglobin, white blood cell counts, red blood cell counts and white cell differentials that tell healthcare providers what types of white cells are present in a patient’s blood. These tests aid in diagnosing diseases such as leukemia, sickle cell disease, various infections and anemias.

Urinalysis reveals diseases that go unnoticed because they don’t have striking signs or symptoms, such as diabetes and chronic urinary tract infections. An automated microchemistry system allows analysis within minutes as well as microscopic examinations being performed to identify elements like bacteria and white blood cells.

Immunology in the lab is the study of invading organisms and our responses to them. These invaders include viruses, bacteria, protozoa or larger parasites. Some Immunology testing at VMH includes Lyme disease, HIV, Giardia, and Cryptosporidium. VMH also can perform molecular testing in house including Influenza A and B, RSV and Strep A and B to name a few.

Most people think of blood in its liquid state, but its ability to thicken into a blood clot (coagulation) is a vital part of the body’s natural defense. Certain blood coagulation disorders increase the risk of developing blood clots in the blood vessels. When a clot forms in blood vessels, it stops blood flow and can be fatal. The test D-Dimer is used to help detect these clots. Protime (INR) and PTT are most often used to monitor blood thinners used in treating and preventing blood clots, after heart attacks and joint surgery.

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