New lab equipment at Lee Memorial

FULTON -- A.L. Lee Memorial Hospital, a 67-bed acute-care facility serving Fulton and surrounding areas, has acquired and installed a new CA-5000 blood-plasma coagulation analyzer for its laboratory department as part of its ongoing effort to provide area residents with state-of-the-art medical-diagnostic services, according to executive director Dennis Casey. The instrument is used to monitor patients taking blood thinners such as Heparin or Coumadin, and assists in diagnosing bleeding disorders.

The recently acquired, fully automated and computerized CA-5000 is more accurate and efficient than the hospital's previous blood-plasma coagulation analyzer. The CA-5000 enables the hospital to better serve patients in its intensive care unit and emergency department as well as outpatients whose physicians may need quick results. The new instrument helps provide plasma-coagulation analyses in a more efficient and cost-effective manner, Casey added.

The CA-5000, distributed by DADE International, can perform 124 tests per hour. In addition, it simultaneously measures a patient's prothrombin times, partial thromboplastin times, and fibrinogens without stopping to change reagents, unlike the hospital's previous analyzer and equipment at other labs. (Prothrombin, thromboplastin, and fibrinogen are chemicals active in the clotting of blood.)

The hospital's laboratory department provides a full spectrum of services -- from hematology to toxicology. Since many of the tests are performed on-site, the hospital can provide faster, more detailed results to doctors and their patients, often within 24 hours. In addition, local physicians have open communication with lab technologists at the facility

Hi-tech departments

In Lee Memorial Hospital's hematology department, the recently acquired Coulter MAXM provides physicians with complete blood counts -- including platelets, a five-part differential, and an analysis of red-cell and platelet size -- plus analyses which can be used by the technical staff to determine if a manual microscopic exam is needed.

The hospital's urinalysis department offers routine analysis of chemical components, microscopic evaluation for infective processes and kidney dysfunction, colon-cancer screening of occult blood, and basic fertility examinations.

The chemistry department performs evaluations ranging from routine chemistry screenings for annual physical exams to cholesterol fractions. It provides metabolic tests to assess thyroid function, detect anemia, and determine whether heart muscle has been damaged from a heart attack. The department's equipment enables it to monitor levels of antiepileptic drugs, antibiotics, and medications used to ease breathing in asthmatics. Lung function is assessed by testing the oxygen level of arterial blood with a Radiometer Blood Gas Analyzer.

Through its toxicology equipment, the laboratory can quickly help the emergency department in determining causes of various drug overdoses such as prescription drugs, cardiac drugs, acetaminophen, or aspirin.

In the microbiology department, the BioMeriux Vitek instrument provides rapid diagnoses and suggested treatments for both inpatients and outpatients. The results are usually available within a day, enabling doctors to treat infections in their early processes.

During the past two years, the laboratory department has been helping to screen area children for lead exposure. By performing this service in-house, the hospital has been able to receive quicker results and minimize any further lead exposure.

In addition, in conjunction with The American Red Cross in Syracuse, Lee Memorial's Blood bank offers replacement therapy, emergency services, and autologous donation services for elective-surgery patients.

Copyright Central New York Business Journal Nov 11, 1996
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