blood lab pulls out the big guns
I went in for a repeat blood test today - again. This is the second time that the lab botched my sample. I’m having a series of tests to find out why my IgM values are low.
Yesterday the doctor called me to tell me that the blood lab in Utah put my sample in the frig for 30 minutes when it was supposed to be analyzed right away. They asked me to come to the hospital lab (instead of my doctors office lab around the corner) for the repeat draw to minimize errors and asked what time I could come in. Thanks to Cesar Chavez, I have today off.
To my surprise, the lab manager and her assistant were there to greet me and apologize profusely for the errors. They gave me a $5 coupon to use in the gift shop or one of the cafes. They also told me that the Chief Operating Officer of my healthcare system and the Medical Director of Quality Resource Management wanted to speak to me afterward to restore my confidence in the healthcare group. !!
Apparently there was a plane or some type of urgent medical delivery system in place to handle my blood this time. And the Utah lab is on alert to watch for my silly sample. All for a low IgM value that most likely doesn’t mean anything.
After my blood test I was led to a conference room with the COO and medical director. They told me that there have been a few meetings about why things went wrong repeatedly with my tests. As a result, new procedures are in place for out of the ordinary lab tests to make sure it never happens again.
Glad to do my part to improve health care for everyone.
