BGH offering local lab tests

When I was a kid, I wanted to be a doctor or a nurse.  That was before I discovered that the sight of blood makes me a little dizzy.  So while some might find it ironic that I work in a hospital, it's fortunately not my job to draw blood.  We have a great staff of lab technologists and phlebotomists who do that.

Bonner General has a wide range of laboratory testing services available right here at the hospital. Our laboratory scientists and professionals have more than 100 years of combined experience, providing advanced laboratory services in the specialties of clinical chemistry, hematology, microbiology, telepathology and transfusion services.  The hospital provides laboratory testing services not only to hospitalized patients, but also to anyone whose physician orders lab work.

More than 90 percent of the requests we receive for lab testing can be performed and analyzed right here in our lab.  For the other ten percent that require very specialized laboratory services, we're able to provide those through our reference laboratory.  Patients simply come to the hospital to have their lab test performed, and our lab sends the specimen to a specialized facility for processing.  Once processed, the results are sent directly back to us, saving patients the time and expense of traveling to Spokane for testing.

Thanks to a grant from the Northern Region Greatest Need fund within the Idaho Community Foundation, Bonner General recently received the funding to purchase a StatSpin Cytofuge for our laboratory.  Complicated as it sounds, this equipment is used to prepare high-quality, compact specimens (called "smears") of body and spinal fluids for the technologist to examine.  This is an exciting addition to our laboratory equipment, as it enables us to provide truly state-of-the-art hematology services to our community.

The laboratory at Bonner General Hospital is just one example of the many convenient healthcare services available right here in Sandpoint.  If you have questions about our lab services or any of the other programs and services we provide, give us a call and find out more about how we can help!

• Lynda Metz is the director of community development at Bonner General Hospital.  For more information about the hospital's laboratory services, please call 265-1182.