27 April 2017
In April Croydon showcased their work to hospital staff and visitors by holding an event in the foyer of the hospital. Staff and visitors had the opportunity to speak to scientists working in the labs and to find out about their work and how they can get the most from their pathology service.
Frederick Mpambire, spoke site manager for Croydon, said: “We wanted to make this event informative, interesting and interactive giving staff and visitors an insight into our work in the lab.
“We were also keen to highlight to nursing staff in particular a number of key issues such as how to label samples correctly and why this must be strictly adhered to for patient safety.
“There was also information about tubes and containers used to collect samples. We used these to explain that when taking blood samples there is a particular order of blood tube draw – and we had a useful information chart to illustrate this.
“We also wanted to remind staff not to send the white top 60ml universal containers for sputa/fluids via the Pneumatic Tube System (Pathology Chute) as these can leak and when they do, the whole PTS system has to be decontaminated which is costly and means the PTS has to be taken out of service for 24 hours.
“In addition, we had a microscope showing malaria and sickle cell blood samples (films) as an example of the laboratory’s key role in diagnosing disease. There was also an ultra violet light machine used to explain the importance of good hand cleansing techniques for infection control purposes.”
Visitors and staff were also able to sign up for a tour of our pathology laboratory taking place at Croydon.