Clinical Laboratory
Introduction
The Clinical Laboratory Division has 5 physicians, 17 technicians, and 2 assistants. The divisionfs physical plant consists of clinical pathology laboratories, a physiological laboratory, and anatomical pathology laboratories. There are five clinical pathology laboratories devoted to bio-chemistry, serology, hematology, urinalysis, and bacteriology and blood banking. The physiological laboratory consists of four sections in which ultra-sonography (US), electrocardiography, electro-encephalography, and respiratory function tests are performed. Two physicians and 2 technicians manage these sections. These laboratories assist clinicians by providing reliable data rapidly.
The anatomical pathology laboratories, staffed by 4 technicians and 3 consultant pathologists, deal with surgical, cytological, and autopsy specimens. All the data gathered by this section are computer-filed and accessible to physicians at any time.
Routine
Activities
The most important role of the clinical pathology
laboratories is rapid and highly reliable data provision to support prompt
therapeutic decision making by doctors. We employ a bar-code system for specimen
identification and an automatic analyzing system. Data quality control and
laboratory management are discussed in monthly meetings attended by the chief
technicians and physicians. Each section holds weekly conferences to monitor
data quality control.
The bacteriology
laboratory plays an important role in infection control at the hospital, reporting
not only routine data but also monthly, quarterly, and yearly statistical
data of hospital infections.
The roles of
the blood banking section are typing blood, screening for irregular antibodies,
and supplying blood at the request of physicians.
In the physiological
laboratory, US is an important screening examination for malignancies in the
neck and abdomen. Cardiac US provides valuable information on preoperative
patients with cardiac disorders and on patients who underwent chemo-therapy
that resulted in cardiac toxicity.
The anatomical
pathology laboratories are engaged in the routine work of evaluating surgical,
cytological, and autopsy materials, and lab personnel are responsible for
making histological and cytological diagnoses. To examine specimens in detail,
immunohistochemical approaches and/or genetic analyses are frequently employed.
New Developments
The clinical
laboratory division now provides urgent examination services for emergency
cases on Saturday and New Year's holiday mornings.
|
Number
of Laboratory Tests Examined in 1994-1999 |
@ | @ | @ | |||
|
Section |
1994 |
1995 |
1996 |
1997 |
1998 |
1999 |
|
Urinalysis |
110,037 |
98,640 |
117,440 |
132,396 |
139,568 |
148,862 |
|
Hematology |
245,640 |
259,388 |
283,725 |
337,205 |
354,182 |
355,947 |
|
Biochemistry |
657,960 |
709,597 |
747,924 |
892,794 |
958,767 |
1,063,769 |
|
Serology |
53,141 |
63,918 |
79,583 |
65,855 |
74.763 |
77,189 |
|
Bacteriology |
15,481 |
16,939 |
17,620 |
21,411 |
20,429 |
21,920 |
|
Surgical
pathol |
6,196 |
6,629 |
7,293 |
8,180 |
8,452 |
8,198 |
|
Cytology |
6,506 |
6,299 |
6,625 |
7,057 |
6,881 |
6,692 |
|
Blood
banking |
12,057 |
14,949 |
20,479 |
24,727 |
22,361 |
24,224 |
|
Physiology |
17,207 |
20,919 |
22,412 |
23,131 |
23,754 |
40,292 |
|
Total
|
1,124,225 |
1,197,228 |
1,303,101 |
1,512,756 |
1,609,746 |
1,747,093 |
|
Number
of Examinations in the Anatomical Pathology in 1994-1999 |
@ | |||||
|
Examinations |
1994 |
1995 |
1996 |
1997 |
1998 |
1999 |
|
Biopsy |
4,815 |
5,262 |
5,890 |
6,713 |
6,908 |
6,702 |
|
Operation |
1,381 |
1,367 |
1,403 |
1,467 |
1,544 |
1,496 |
|
Cytology |
6,506 |
6,299 |
6,625 |
7,057 |
6,881 |
6,692 |
|
Autopsy |
44 |
49 |
35 |
33 |
23 |
22 |
(Y. NISHIWAKI, M. HATA)
