BGH selects primary reference lab

SANDPOINT — Bonner General Health selected Mayo Medical Laboratories as its primary reference laboratory. This selection gives Bonner General Health access to Mayo Clinic’s extensive menu of laboratory tests and clinical expertise.

Through its worldwide network of more than 4,000 clients, Mayo Medical Laboratories enables hospitals, medical centers, and health care organizations around the world to send tests to the laboratories of Mayo Clinic, which are some of the most sophisticated in the world. Bonner General Health’s access to Mayo Clinic’s extensive test menu enhances its ability to provide the highest quality laboratory testing for patients in Bonner County and surrounding communities.

Most laboratory testing will continue to be performed by the Bonner General Health laboratory with only the most specialized tests being sent to Mayo Clinic. Specimens taken at Bonner General Health are transported via air to Mayo Clinic, with test results often available the following day through a computer interface. Additionally, Mayo Clinic physicians and scientists in every specialty laboratory are available for consultation regarding test selection, utilization and methodologies, and results interpretation.

“We are excited to partner with Mayo Medical Laboratories,” says Sheryl Rickard, Bonner General Health CEO. “Mayo Medical Laboratories provides high-quality laboratory services. Our partnership enhances the services that Bonner General Health provides to the members of our community.”

“With each hospital and laboratory we serve, we strive to provide the right test at the right time for each patient,” says William Morice, II, M.D., Ph.D., president of Mayo Medical Laboratories and chair of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology at Mayo Clinic. “Working with Bonner General Health’s laboratory staff, we want to work together to provide the highest quality laboratory tests at an affordable price for the patients who need these tests.”

For those in need of laboratory testing, specimens will continue to be collected at Bonner General Health’s laboratory, emergency department, and outpatient clinics.

Bonner General Health is a private, nonprofit 25-bed critical access hospital and health care network of outpatient clinics. Bonner General Health is fully accredited by DNV GL Healthcare. For more information, please visit BonnerGeneral.org.

The Mayo Clinic Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology and its reference laboratory Mayo Medical Laboratories provide advanced laboratory testing and pathology services to support 4,000 health care organizations around the world. Revenue from this testing supports medical education and research at Mayo Clinic, a nonprofit worldwide leader in medical care, research and education for people from all walks of life. Complemented by collaborations with diagnostic and biotechnology companies, the department maintains a robust diagnostic test-development program, launching more than 150 new tests each year.

Mayo Clinic is a nonprofit organization committed to clinical practice, education, and research, providing expert, comprehensive care to everyone who needs healing. For more information, visit mayoclinic.org/about-mayo-clinic or newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org.