Specimen Processing/Sendouts

South Shore Health•Weymouth, MA

3d•Onsite

About The Position

Under the direction of the supervisor, performs specimen processing, customer services, and non-technical duties in the General Laboratory. This is a part-time position with 24 budgeted hours on the day shift at South Shore Health’s 85 Columbian Street facility in Weymouth, Massachusetts. The role receives, logs, registers, and accession-numbers specimens in the laboratory information system (LIS); verifies specimen labeling; prepares specimens for reference laboratories; tracks send-out tests and results; transports specimens to laboratory sections; and provides phone and report services. The employee also maintains supplies and the work area, records refrigerator and freezer temperatures, follows laboratory and hospital safety policies, and may assist with training and orienting new employees.

Requirements

Equivalent of four years of high school education is preferred.
Up to three months to become proficient.
Adherence to laboratory and hospital safety procedures, including proper use of personal protective equipment when handling specimens.
Ability to perform specimen registration and related work in the LIS.

Nice To Haves

Medical Laboratory Assistant (MLA) certification through ASCP or AMT.

Responsibilities

Receive, log, and assign computer accession numbers to specimens from nursing floors, outpatient drawing sites, and off-site locations.
Receive specimens into the LIS by barcode scanning or manual entry, verify labeling, and apply barcode labels correctly.
Look up un-barcoded specimens, print labels when appropriate, contact locations when orders are missing, enter tests from downtime and outpatient requisitions, and document cancellations while notifying the appropriate physician or location.
Prepare specimens according to reference laboratory requirements, including centrifuging and separating specimens, transmitting temperature-specific batch reports, recording specimens sent, and entering miscellaneous send-out test names and order codes in the LIS.
Submit CPT codes and costs for miscellaneous send-out tests to the Specimen Processing Supervisor for billing.
Clean and maintain the work area, keep supplies stocked, and notify the supervisor when supplies are low or insufficient.
Scan reference laboratory results into the LIS within 24 hours of receipt.
Review outstanding send-out specimen reports and follow up on overdue results.
Transport specimens to laboratory sections, promptly retrieving specimens from the pneumatic tube system and delivering routine specimens within 10 minutes and STAT specimens immediately.
Register specimens brought directly to the laboratory in the LIS, completing required fields and verifying information for accuracy.
Answer calls courteously and promptly; provide accurate and complete reports and messages, and transfer calls as necessary.
Generate and distribute laboratory reports as needed, faxing reports when required after verifying the fax number and faxing only external inquiry reports.
Record specimen-processing refrigerator and freezer temperatures daily and notify the supervisor when temperatures fall outside established limits.
Follow laboratory and hospital policies for universal precautions, chemical hygiene, and safety, including use of required PPE, safe waste disposal, spill procedures, hazard reporting, and cleaning and disinfecting the work area.
Assist with training and orientation of new employees and serve as a resource on departmental procedures.
Remain receptive to technological advances and changes to work processes and practices.
Enter add-on test requests according to procedure and order a redraw when a test cannot be added on.
Report to assigned work stations on schedule and complete the work schedule unless an absence, tardiness, or early departure is approved or appropriately reported.