PATHOLOGY AWARENESS by Deborah Lakeland

PATHOLOGY AWARENESS

by Deborah LakelandSpecialist Biomedical Scientist

NHS Pathology Service

• Employs 25,000 staff in the UK• Costs £2.5 billion per year

• Diagnoses 70% of all patients conditions• Performs disease monitoring tests

• Doctors rely on our diagnostic skills and specialist knowledge

IMMUNOLOGY AWARENESS

LANCASHIRE & LAKELAND IMMUNOLOGY SERVICE

Located at the Royal Preston Hospital Pathology Department

A supportive role in the patients journey

by Deborah Lakeland

Lancashire & Lakeland Immunology Service

• One of 28 Regional centres in the UK• One of 4 in the North West

• 4th largest Immunology lab in the UK(Data from Keele University Benchmarking 2007)

• Serves a population of 1.7million residents in South Cumbria and Lancashire!!!!



• We are Clinical Pathology accredited, meeting national standards and guidelines

• We participate in national quality assessment schemes• We test 66,000 specimens per year

• We perform 250,000 tests per year!!!!!



We are a team of 23 dedicatedHealthcare Professionals

• Consultant Clinical Immunologist• Consultant Clinical Scientist

• Trainee Clinical Scientist• Laboratory Manager

• Specialist Biomedical Scientists• Biomedical Scientists

• Trainee Biomedical Scientists• Medical Laboratory Assistants

• Medical Secretaries• Specialist Nurses



We serve regional acute hospitals• Lancashire Teaching Hospitals Trust

• Royal Blackburn Hospital• Blackpool Victoria Hospital• Burnley General Hospital• Furness General Hospital• Lancaster Royal Infirmary

• Westmoreland General HospitalA supportive role in the patients journey


We serve other hospitals around the UK for specialist referrals

• Hope Hospital• The University Hospital Aintree

• Wythenshawe• Royal Liverpool Hospital

• Walton Centre for Neurology & Neurosurgery• Glan Clwyd Hospital

• Wrightington• Southport & Formby District General Hospital

• Wythenshaw Hospital



We carry out tests for Primary Care

• General Practice

• Fulwood Barracks

• Central Lancashire Prisons



We provide a Pollen counting service

• 1 of 11 sites in the European Aeroallergen Network

• 1 of 20 sites in Pollen UK, who predict national pollen forecasts

as seen on TV weather reports!!!!!!A supportive role in the patients journey

The Pollen Monitoring

Network

A supportive role in the patients journey www.pollenuk.co.uk

The Pollen Trap


Immunology is the study of all aspects

of the immune system

• in healthy and diseased states

• Malfunctions of the immune system in immunological disorders

• Physical, chemical and physiological characteristics of the immune system



We provide a high quality service used to diagnose and monitor patients

• primary and secondary immune deficiencies

• lymphoproliferative disorders

• monoclonal gammopathies

• chronic infections



We provide the regional service for Primary Immunodeficiency

and allergy



We offer a full range of diagnostic autoantibody assays to support clinical diagnosis

• thyroid disease• rheumatoid disease

• SLE• Vasculitis

• chronic renal & lung disease• neurological syndromes

• gastrointestinal tract disorders



We provide a comprehensive allergy service• test for a range of allergens

• Investigate anaesthetic reactions• outpatient clinic

• offer challenge tests• specific desensitisation immunotherapy

e.g. venom and aeroallergens



We routinely perform phenotyping tests on leukocytes

• for assessment of immune status

• for detection of haemato-malignancy

• perform functional cellular assays by prior arrangement



We perform joint fluid microscopy to detect the presence of crystals

which are diagnostic of gout



We participate in multidisciplinary team meetings with other specialities,

which provide education and improved liaison for patient care



We are committed to biomedical research and development

• EliSPOT• neutrophil function test

• Pi typing• liver blots

• ENA • free light chains



We are active in continuous professional development

• seminars on current topics of interest

• Internal/external speakers

• journal club for reviewing scientific publications

• Internal/external courses for updates



We are a comprehensive diagnostic immunology laboratory which underpins

the diagnosis of all immunological disease



The investigation of immunological problems can be complex and advice is

available from the laboratory during normal working hours



The clinical service is covered out of routine hours by Consultant Immunologists for discussion of clinical problems, and by Biomedical Scientists for emergency

laboratory investigations


Documents

PATHOLOGY AWARENESS by Deborah Lakeland