As we approach the end of our training program, we face reality: entering the work force in the world of laboratory medicine. But wait a minute, there was no class, didactic, course or guideline on how to do this during our training. In the meantime, we are trying to wrap up research projects, fini...(Read More)

Routine quality control (QC) is a necessary part of any quality assurance (QA) plan.  Many articles and seminars offer guidance on how often QC events should be performed to maximize error detection. However, even with a well-designed QC program, QC events are snapshots in time. What if we could ga...(Read More)

Case: The patient is a 30 year old male. CBC showed a normal hemoglobin concentration, hematocrit and mean corpuscular volume (MCV). Hemoglobin electrophoresis was ordered because the patient had been told that he had sickle cell trait. On alkaline gel electrophoresis, the patient's sample is in th...(Read More)

A physician is treating a female patient (age and ethnicity unstated) with cystic fibrosis who also has adrenal insufficiency, and wants to determine if the patient is absorbing the oral hydrocortisone. Is a 24-hour urinary free cortisol (UFC) measurement helpful?     Response:  Most laboratori...(Read More)