LifeCare's Director of Laboratory, Nima Mostofi, describes his team of lab techs as truly exceptional in their line of work.

Chemistry
      Chemistry involves the identification and investigation of proteins and chemical substances.
     Studying the ways in which these substances interact, combine, and change requires some highly sophisticated equipment.
      LifeCare’s newest equipment, an Abbott Architect ci4100, generates quantitative measurements using chemiluminescent technology (the same chemical reactions that make fireflies glow).
       In other words, within a fraction of a second, it registers a glowing light pulse and plots it against a graph, resulting in a number that is then given to the physician.
     “Think of when someone says, ‘my cholesterol number was high.’ This is where the number comes from,” Nima says.
      The device measures hormones, enzymes, lipids, electrolytes, thyroid, cardiac markers, cancer markers, and a litany of other tests.
      The new equipment also features microrobotic sample and reagent handling that reads the bar code on each sample to know exactly what test is needed.
     “We run self-diagnostic testing on the Abbott Architect daily to ensure the results remain highly accurate,” says Glenda Johnson, Medical Lab Technician.

Medical lab technician Glenda Johnson prepares testing reagents for use in the new Abbott Architect ci4100 in LifeCare's remodeled laboratory.

Hematology
      Hematology, or the study of blood cells, is another area of the Lab that implements this new equipment.
Hematology tests determine many things such as identifying whether or not a patient is anemic, has an infection, or is responding to chemotherapy.
      “Because the results from this new instrument are so accurate, our manual hematology tests have been reduced by nearly thirty percent,” says Medical Technologist Connie Lee.
      Besides looking at platelets and red cells, the equipment can test all five sub-types of white cells.
      “Lasers run across the sample at different angles to sense the various cell lines. This increases the accuracy of results with more precise high and low level readings,” she says.
 

Lab tech Beth Siverhus loads the lab's centrifuge with samples in preparation for chemistry testing.

Microbiology
      Microbiology is the study of microorganisms. New equipment in this area of LifeCare’s Lab includes a dual microscope to assist with training and education.
      “Think of it as a microscope with two viewfinders positioned directly across from each other,” Nima says.
      Before the dual microscope, one tech would focus a traditional microscope and then step back to allow the second tech to see.
      “There was no guarantee both people were always seeing the same thing,” Connie says. “The dual microscope allows both of us to view the slide at the same time and use the built-in laser pointer for pinpointing specific details.”
      The dual microscope is helpful in training MT/MLT student (medical technologists and medical lab technicians) from the University of North Dakota Medical School and Rasmussen College.

      These students work side by side with LifeCare’s lab techs for more than 20 weeks at a time.
“They get a great experience here,” says Nima, in reference to the nearly 100% success rate among visiting students. “They have all gone on to complete their program of study and get a job in this field.”

Blood Bank
      As the name indicates, a blood bank is where a hospital keeps its blood supply. At LifeCare, that place is a temperature controlled storage unit within the lab.
     The blood bank includes a monitoring system that alerts the lab and the hospital nurses station if the temperature within the unit begins to fluctuate.
      “We store a variety of blood units by type for use during patient infusions,” Nima says. “We determine the patient’s blood type and find suitable blood units to prevent life threatening complications.”

LifeCare's blood supply is housed in a climate controlled storage unit.

Floating
      In addition to covering the Lab’s four main work areas, each tech also takes a turn at floating; that is, covering additional lab-related activities throughout the hospital.
      These include handling paperwork, overseeing the blood bank, tending to outpatients, performing blood draws, and other duties.
      “For a float, the day is full of variety,” Nima says.

      LifeCare Medical Technologist Beth Siverhus agrees.
      “Being a float rounds out the experience for the employees and the students who learn here.”
      She considers the float rotation a nice change of pace because of the direct interaction with patients.
      “We love every area of the work we do, especially when we see firsthand the results of our efforts,” she says. “Working directly with patients makes it more personal.

Being a Super Sleuth
Not only do Lab technicians experience real time results for the work they do, they bear the responsibility of providing many pieces of information needed for a physician to make appropriate decisions regarding treatment.
      “Once we determine the test results, it’s like providing pieces to a puzzle to help a healthcare provider make immediate decisions for their patients,” Nima says.
     This sense of piecing together a puzzle is common in the lab.
     “We run tests in microbiology, chemistry, and hematology knowing that each test brings us closer to seeing the big picture,” Nima says.
     “Based on experience, we may suspect the answer before testing is finished,” Connie says. “It’s a great feeling when the results come back and confirm what you already suspected.”
Occasionally, a case may stump them—but not often. Of the nearly 20,000 tests run each month locally, about 500 are sent on to the Mayo Clinic for further analysis.

Lab tech Connie Lee conducts a microbiology test in LifeCare's lab.

“We have a direct connection with Mayo and can access the results on their web site within minutes of them determining the results,” Nima says.

Working Conditions
     Because the Lab is an integral part of so many LifeCare activities, Nima and his team are expected to deliver critical information every single day.
     Meeting that responsibility could have been a real challenge recently when the department underwent a major remodeling project.
      “Our equipment needs a climate controlled environment to ensure accurate readings. Even the smallest amount of dust could affect outcomes,” Nima says. “We had to plan ahead and plan very well so our services weren’t interrupted.”
      Coordinating with maintenance, housekeeping, and others allowed Nima and his team to uphold their promise to deliver timely results for LifeCare.
      “We were almost like pinballs bouncing off one another because we were down to about one fourth of our normal space, but we were able to continue all our services as normal,” he says.
      “Unless you entered the lab, you wouldn’t suspect anything was out of the ordinary. Accomplishing that was certainly a proud moment for all of us.”