Laboratory
NEW! Clinical Laboratory Partners -- another of the Hartford HealthCare partners -- now provides outpatient sample drawing services for Windham Hospital's patients, in the brand new facility located in the Windham Hospital Family Medical Center. The building is on the main Windham Hospital campus, just up the hill from the main Shea building. This service replaces the previous outpatient lab service on the first floor of the main building.
Hours of Operation
Monday - Friday, 7 AM to 6 PM
Saturdays 7 AM to Noon
The purpose of all laboratory services is to assist in diagnosis and disease management by providing the most accurate and error-free results possible. The lab is staffed by certified pathologists, technologists and technicians and uses the most current methodologies for testing. The health care provider initiates all orders for tests in the various departments of the laboratory: Anatomic Pathology, Chemistry, Blood Bank, Microbiology and Hematology.
Anatomic Pathology
Anatomic Pathology involves the microscopic examination of tissues (Surgical Pathology) and cells (Cytopathology) from various types of specimens to determine whether or not disease is present.
In Surgical Pathology, the pathologist microscopically examines tissues removed during surgery, or biopsies submitted from physicians’ offices, to determine whether a patient’s illness is benign, inflammatory or malignant. The pathologist’s diagnosis is a critical factor in deciding a patient’s future care. Some examples of surgical pathology specimens are breast, colon, skin, prostate, cervical and bone marrow biopsies.
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Cytopathology involves the microscopic evaluation of cells from body fluids, aspirates of soft tissues and scrapings of body tissues. The cytologic interpretation of the specimen provides the patient’s physician with information on benign, pre-malignant or malignant cellular changes. The most widely recognized specimen for cytologic examination is the Pap test, a sampling of cells from the cervix. Some other examples of specimens submitted for cytologic examination are bronchial washings, body cavity fluids, urines and needle aspirates of palpable lesions.
The Anatomic Pathology staff also works with the WCMH Radiology staff in procuring fine needle aspirates from deep seated-lesions using imaging guidance. |
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The Chemistry Laboratory offers an extensive range of routine testing, such as glucose, cholesterol, electrolytes, and thyroid tests. Other specialized assays are also available to aid in disease diagnosis and management, such as Hepatitis, HIV, and Lyme Disease testing. The Chemistry Lab uses highly automated, state of the art lab instrumentation to provide STAT testing results to the Emergency Department and inpatient floors, within a very short turnaround time. The laboratory computer system has the ability to “talk” to both the instrumentation, and the hospital computer system, which ensures results can be conveyed to Clinicians rapidly and accurately. |
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Blood Bank
The Blood Bank focuses on providing the highest quality, safest possible transfusions and other blood bank related testing. The Blood Bank keeps an inventory of different blood types to be used in emergency and elective cases. Patients are assessed prior to transfusion to decide on the most compatible units.
Microbiology
The Microbiology Laboratory works with organisms that are too small to be seen with the naked eye. As a Medical Microbiology Laboratory we provide information to your doctor regarding the presence or absence of an infection. If an infection is present we identify the organism causing the infection and determine which antibiotic will kill the infected organism.
Examples are:
Bacteriology: Detection of Methicillin Resistant Staph Aureus, (MRSA)
Mycobacteriology: Detection/Identification of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the organism that causes tuberculosis.
Mycology: Detection/Identification of fungi that causes athlete’s foot.
Parasitology: Detection of Parasites such as Giardia that causes diarrhea.
Virology: Detection of Influenza viruses that cause the Flu.
Hematology
WCMH’s hematology department offers a wide variety of services including: general hematology, coagulation, clinical microscopy (urinalysis), body fluid analysis, blood parasite identification, semen analysis for fertility and post-vasectomy, and assistance with bone marrow aspirates.
Credentials and licensure:
State of Connecticut, Department of Health Services,
Approved Public Health Laboratory #HP0252
Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendment #07D0095208
College of American Pathologists #1187101
Food and Drug Administration #1270164
Nadia Nashid, MD, FCAP
Chief of Pathology
Medical Director, Department of Laboratory Services
Board Certified: Anatomic and Clinical Pathology, Cytopathology
Marilyn Kritzman, MD, FCAP
Staff Pathologist
Department of Laboratory Services
Board Certified: Anatomic and Clinical Pathology
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