Department Spotlight: Core Laboratory at Renown Regional Medical Center
August 30, 2024
Answer: The Core Laboratory team at Renown Regional. With the largest lab workload in our health system, the Renown Regional Core Lab is where compassionate care meets scientific excellence. While under the care of the Core Lab Team, patients can rest assured that they are in the greatest of hands - literally and figuratively - with every scientist, technical specialist and lab assistant that serves in this department.
A Core Mission of Accuracy and Precision
At Renown Regional, the only Level II Trauma Center in the region, the Core Laboratory works on a wide variety of lab tests to help providers diagnose, treat and monitor each patient’s condition. Those testing processes, known as “benches,” include:
- Blood Gas
- Chemistry & Immunoassay
- Coagulation
- Hematology & Differentials
- Urinalysis
Working together in harmony, each member of the Core Lab team has an equally vital role in our health system, and all share a common goal.
“Our number one priority is to provide accurate results for our patients, ensuring that the providers have all the correct information they need to treat them,” said Lauren Anderson, Manager of Core Laboratory.
As one can imagine, there are several factors involved when it comes to ensuring those accurate patient lab results that Lauren mentioned above.
“Throughout the day in the core laboratory, there are many tasks to be performed for the accuracy and validity of our patient results,” said Jackie Blazquez, Sr. Medical Lab Scientist. “The medical lab scientists perform maintenance on the instruments daily while accommodating patient samples and releasing results. Our clinical lab assistants help the scientists with receiving samples, reviewing patient labels for any discrepancies, answering phone calls and assisting with the automated lab sample line.”
“The roles and responsibilities will vary depending on the bench assignment, but every bench will have one responsibility in common: performing preventative maintenance on our analyzers and running quality controls afterwards,” added Brittany Oliver-Stergiou, Medical Lab Scientist.
From start to finish, there is rarely a dull moment in Renown Regional’s Core Lab. In fact, this capable team can process up to 7,000 samples per day at this hospital alone.
"As a Medical Lab Scientist, for each instrument we use, we have to perform maintenance, calibration and quality control to ensure that the analyzer is ready for patient testing,” said Lauren Anderson. “Once the analyzers are ready for patient testing, we perform analysis on the samples, ensuring that the patient's results are consistent with their condition and no errors are found. Between our inpatient and outpatient centers, we run thousands of samples every day, prioritizing and juggling many tasks at once while producing accurate results.”
“Right when we get in, we are putting samples on the analyzers, reading results and calling critical alerts or recollects,” added Rosalina Lunsford, Medical Lab Scientist. “Our chemistry analyzers have all the analytes one can think of. Each individual chemistry test that the hospital uses is calibrated, quality checked and reviewed by our chemistry maintenance experts.”
Although there are many moving pieces when it comes to the work of our Core Lab experts, these team members work like a well-oiled machine in order to keep patient care at Renown Regional running efficiently.
“I start my shift by reviewing my pending worklist and verifying any outstanding STAT tests; then, I track all my untracked samples for easy retrieval, and I'll go through my pending worklist again to make sure that everything is on track for proper turn-around time,” said Lindsey Randle, Medical Lab Scientist. "I'll retrieve anything that may need further special testing, and before releasing results, I will check the sample for any interferences or contamination. This process is on a constant loop throughout my shift in addition to performing analyzer maintenance and quality control testing at timed intervals. This is all done to ensure that we are releasing precise and accurate test results so that patients can receive proper treatment.”
“We play a major role in keeping the hospital functioning,” added Rosalina Lunsford. “While the hospital doesn’t see us, we keep patient care moving. Core Lab is not stagnant; it is evolving each day. Tests are being added, machines are being updated and policies are changing. We see hundreds of patient results from different departments throughout the hospital. We analyze, question and conclude many times throughout the day and night.”
Think of discovering a diagnosis and monitoring a condition as an ongoing investigation. Our Core Lab professionals are key detectives in the investigation, playing an essential – and often life-saving – role in the diagnosis, treatment and maintenance of each patient’s condition.
“Oftentimes, we are the first to detect a patient's problem and escalate it to their provider,” said Lauren Anderson. “For example, looking under the microscope at a patient's white blood cells, Medical Lab Scientists may be the first to see a patient's leukemia and, with the collaboration of our pathologists, ensure that the next steps are taken towards diagnosis and treatment.
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Adaptability and Resiliency
In the ever-changing world of laboratory medicine, science and technology can change at a rapid rate. Along with handling a climbing number of patient samples daily, being able to bounce back and change processes when needed is a must for this team.But of course, the Regional Core Lab has this down to a science.
“We perform a lot more testing than most may realize between inpatients, the emergency room and outpatients, as well as serving as a reference lab for other facilities in northern Nevada,” said Lindsey Randle. “This means there is almost always a constant stream of testing going through our analyzers.”
Being adaptable is a great sense of pride for this team. It’s a duty they take seriously, because it’s up to them to ensure test results are reviewed and sent back as timely as possible and with the highest standards of accuracy.
“I am most proud of my coworkers for adjusting to the recent updates to core laboratory,” said Rosalina Lunsford. “We have had new floor plan layouts and complete machine changes. The hustle and bustle of the laboratory never ceases. I feel us scientists are top tier and know how to work in and out of these transformations.”
“I am proud of our team's ability to adapt to an ever-changing environment,” added Lindsey Randle. “We are implementing new analyzers, systems and workflows while maintaining a positive attitude throughout the process.”
And it’s not just patients and providers the Core Lab must report to – it’s also the regulatory bodies, who routinely ensure our lab is running at its best. This department is proud to report that they passed their most recent inspection with flying colors.
“Our team has had a very successful inspection with one of our main regulatory bodies, the College of American Pathologists (CAP), that focuses specifically on laboratory quality and improvement,” said Lauren Anderson.
This team has also worked hard to overcome any challenges that come their way. One of their biggest feats was going from having many traveling medical professionals (also known as “travelers”) in their department to having none at all, meaning everyone on their team is a full-fledged Renown team member.
“I’m proud of the lab’s resilience,” said Brittany Oliver-Stergiou. “We’ve fought hard and overcome many obstacles such as short staffing, analyzer/software issues and analyzer validation. I am also proud that our management has worked so hard to produce an accepting, supporting environment.”
At the end of the day, the Core Lab strives to make our frontline care teams’ lives easier, getting them the results they need to uphold our best-in-class care offerings.
“The nurses’ and doctors’ jobs are stressful because they are front and center with the patients. While we don’t see patients’ faces and pain, we want to help nurses help their patients feel better,” said Rosalina Lunsford. “We want nurses to get results, we want the doctors to be able to make the diagnosis and give care and we want patients to get well.”
The Renown Reasons
You will find a team of lab professionals within nearly every health system. So, why do these talented professionals choose to lend their talents to Renown?
There were many diverse answers to that question, from non-profit core values and a positive team culture to the opportunities to work with patients with a variety of health conditions.
“I chose Renown because I felt it would give me the experience I needed to succeed in laboratory medicine,” said Rosalina Lunsford. “Renown has a large population margin, so we as scientists get to see different age groups with different/similar conditions. Our chances of seeing rare conditions are also increased. Medical lab science is a niche job and Renown is also a very niche hospital. I stay here because I feel special in my job in this hospital.”
“I choose to work at Renown because its core values are aligned with my own,” added Lauren Anderson. “Working for a not-for-profit hospital is very important to me, as it benefits my community. I love being a part of the team that takes care of the most critical or unique cases in the area and ensuring that this high level of care is available to our community members, close to home."
“I know Renown strives to be the best hospital in northern Nevada with a variety of resources for both their patients and employees,” added Jackie Blazquez.
For most of these team members, they attribute Renown as a health system that helped them build upon their skills as a scientist. Having a robust benefits package, including an educational assistance program, is an added perk that helps them build those skills even more.
“I chose to work at Renown straight out of school because I knew, it being the largest hospital in the area, there is more testing and unique cases at Renown that aren’t commonly seen at smaller hospitals,” said Brittany Oliver-Stergiou. “Starting my career at Renown has enhanced my skills as a scientist. I continue to work for Renown because I love the work I do and the people I work with.”
“I love the growth opportunities and tuition reimbursement that ensured I was able to advance my education and career,” added Lauren Anderson. “Of course, my favorite thing at Renown is my team. Everyone here is so dedicated and caring, making work seem less like work.”
Guess what? You can impact lives, too! Our Lab Services division is looking for people just like you. According to the Core Lab team at Renown Regional, a good lab coworker...
- “...not only lends a helping hand but [will also] go out of their way to do little things as well. It means a lot when someone goes out of their way to pass out pending orders, restock a station or make extra quality check.” - Brittany Oliver-Stergiou
- “... is effective in communication, will assist their coworkers with any questions and help with other departments if needed and if time permits.” - Jackie Blazquez
- “...someone who is organized, a clear communicator and an efficient multi-tasker. We are constantly juggling multiple samples/tests at once, so knowing how to prioritize and time testing properly is vital. Being able to communicate clearly with your bench partner will increase efficiency by sharing the workload.” - Lindsey Randle
- “... is helpful and kind. If their bench is not busy, they will offer help to someone that may be busier.” - Lauren Anderson
- “...someone who is adaptable and a team player. With all the changes we see in laboratory, we need people to adapt with the changes. Laboratory is stressful work, so having coworkers with good temperaments and fun personalities help you get through the day. Thankfully, Core Lab team is filled with all personalities ranging from serious to logical to creative. We all make up Renown’s core laboratory.” - Rosalina Lunsford
It’s time to make your move into the lab. Take this as your sign. Discover the possibilities at renown.org/careers.
“Per the CDC Division of Laboratory Systems, ‘about 70% of patients' diagnoses and medical decisions are based off on laboratory results.’ We are the hidden profession that saves patients' lives,” closes Jackie Blazquez.