Laboratory Medicine in a Community Hospital

Catalog Description:  The student will specialize in one or two areas of the clinical lab but will participate in all its general teaching activities. The student will make rounds on patients having abnormal or interesting laboratory results and will be expected to attend and present at clinical conferences and rounds that are laboratory medicine oriented. The student will work directly with several staff members who will provide suggestions for projects, independent readings, and discussion cases. The importance of quality assurance, appropriate laboratory utilization, and the role of the clinical pathologist serving as a consultant will be emphasized. Opportunities to work on special projects are available.
This course builds appreciation of the correlation between clinical presentations and laboratory results from the perspective of a busy general hospital clinical laboratory.

Syllabus

Sites:  

View site addresses by clicking on the site name below or visiting the site codes table.

Required session attendance:

Typical weekly schedule/Delivery Mode:  M-F, 8:30am-5:00pm.  Conference schedule and self-study will be discussed.  No night or weekend assignments.

Direct patient care:  No

Consent Requirement: Arranged. Please submit a request to schedule using the form linked below.

LAMP Arranged Electives Form

Course Objectives:  By the end of this rotation, students will be able to:

• discuss the clinical significance of laboratory test results, including chemistry, hematology, coagulation, microbiology, blood bank, immunology, toxicology, cytogenetics, involving sensitivity, specificity, reference ranges, and sources of false positives and negatives;
• correlate clinical pathways and or testing algorithm for disease specific workups;
• describe the evolving role of molecular biology in diagnostic laboratory medicine;
• describe the role of forensic laboratory medicine testing regarding drug screening and medical examiner pathology;
• describe the changing local, state, and federal guidelines that regulate clinical laboratory testing; and
• describe the role of point of care testing at the bedside

Graded Components:  

• Regular attendance at worksites and conferences, as scheduled
• Engagement in conferences and discussions
• Professionalism in interactions with faculty, residents and staff
• Supervisor Assessment of quality and delivery of research project

Grading Scale:  H/E/S/N

Allow repetition of course: Repetition not allowed

Course equivalency:  Does not apply