Like a silent scientific army, the Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital Fort Worth microbiology laboratory has been working to assist eight of the system’s hospitals and two Neighborhood Health & Wellness Centers through the pandemic, while still maintaining the testing needed every day before COVID-19.
The lab has done 61, 000 COVID-19 tests since April — for perspective, the lab did 4,287 flu tests last year. The lab also did 330,000 tests for all of 2020, not including COVID-19 tests.
At the microbiology laboratory, couriers wheel in dollies with bins all day, containing specimens that range from blood cultures to wound cultures from the hospitals. Laboratory technologists stay busy, bending over microscopes and vials, some of their hours modified to accommodate the COVID-19 testing volume. The lab also has added systemwide testing for chlamydia and gonorrhea.
“This is a huge amount of testing,” said Travia Flippin, B.S., MLS (ASCP)CM, manager of microbiology and special procedures. “This lab has accomplished a lot in a short amount of time.”
Corey Wilson, FACHE, chief operating officer at Texas Health Fort Worth, said, “The team has been nimble and innovative in approaching a variety of testing methods in response to the pandemic. Their heroic efforts have made sure our patients are receiving timely and effective care, while making sure providers and staff are safe.”
Faster results
Adding eight new instruments to speed COVID-19 testing and adding COVID-19 capability to another one was an enormous effort, but it paid off by increasing volume and decreasing the time patients, nurses and physicians on the medical staffs had to wait for results.
Each new instrument has to be validated – essentially, tested to make sure it is producing correct results. Validation is time-consuming, and so is writing up the reports for review by Dr. Lori Wasson, lab medical director.
Then the microbiology medical laboratory scientists have to be trained to use the different machines and protocols.
As the hospital’s COVID-19 patient census grew to about 300 a day, the lab needed the new instruments and they also provided backup if one was down.
Outstanding work
A key player in the lab is Derek Orbach, B.S., MLS (ASCP)CM, supervisor, microbiology and special procedures, whose experience includes testing specimens for Ebola at the Dallas County Health Department Bioterrorism laboratory during the Ebola event in 2014.
“He really stepped up to bring in COVID testing on so many instruments,” Flippin said. “He’s very conscientious and has a vast knowledge base in molecular testing and safety standards.”
Orbach said several of the new instruments required multiple validations, which made for a stressful situation as the lab wanted to quickly ramp up testing.
Lab scientist Aerial Lockhart, MLS (ASCP)CM, said, “It took a team effort – at some point everyone had their hand in the pot. Several people were involved in the multiple test runs required to complete the validations.”
Orbach and Flippin said help from the hospital’s nurses and medical staff physicians, as well as nurses from Central Staffing Office have been important. Nurses from Central Staffing help prepare testing kits that go to the floors.
“The collaboration has been wonderful,” Flippin said.
Hospitals covered by lab
The Fort Worth lab assists these additional hospitals with testing, performing all pre-admission testing as well as other work: Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital Alliance, Texas Health Arlington Memorial Hospital, Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital Azle, Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital Cleburne,Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital Southwest Fort Worth, Texas Health Clearfork (a department of Texas Health Southwest), Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital Stephenville and Texas Health Neighborhood Care & Wellness Centers in Burleson and Willow Park (departments of Texas Health Fort Worth).
(Pictured top right: Roshan Jaspau, MLS (ASPC) CM, works in the Texas Health Fort Worth microbiology and special procedures laboratory.)
By Judy Wiley • Posted February 16, 2021
