Ross Memorial Hospital laboratory accredited for quality, competence, safety

The laboratory at Ross Memorial Hospital has once again been accredited by the Institute for Quality Management in Healthcare.

The RMH Laboratory met 98 per cent of the accreditation requirements for quality, competence, and safety. This is the fourth successful accreditation for the department.

“The accreditation process is a great opportunity to highlight all of the work done in the Lab by a team of highly dedicated, skilled, and quality-minded staff,” says Pamela Calverley, Regional Director, Diagnostic Imaging and Laboratory Services.

The RMH Laboratory is a ‘core services’ lab, providing chemistry, hematology and blood bank services.

The team works 24 hours a day, 365 days a year to provide testing for patients across inpatient and outpatient clinic areas, pre-operative patients and those visiting the Emergency Department.

“Almost all patients who visit the hospital require some form of laboratory testing, whether it’s bloodwork, urine analysis, or other cultures or swabs,” says Calverley.

With broad testing being one of the keys to containing COVID-19, the RMH laboratory has been busier than ever, having processed more than 13,000 COVID-19 test swabs in just a few months.

They work tirelessly to source swabs to support the hospital’s testing efforts as well as coordinating testing through the provincial Lab system.

They receive and enter all results into the local system, and work with the RMH team to notify individuals of their results.

“The RMH laboratory team is integral to our ability to provide exceptional patient care,” says Kelly Isfan, president and CEO, RMH, “and their passion will continue to support our local efforts in the fight against COVID-19.”