Author Question: Which of the following groups of patients should not be included in establishing moving averages ... (Read 26 times)

folubunmi · **on:** Jun 25, 2018

Which of the following groups of patients should not be included in establishing moving averages using red cell indices?

a. Chemotherapy patients
b. Female patients
c. Obstetric patients
d. Surgical patients

Question 2

A laboratory gets numerous complaints regarding the length of time it takes hematology results to get to the emergency department. What would be an appropriate response?

a. Make this a quality assurance project.
b. Ignore the complaints.
c. Explain why it takes so long.
d. Tell the employees to work faster.

cegalasso · **Reply #1 on:** Jun 25, 2018

Answer to Question 1

ANS: B
Chemotherapeutic drugs often interfere with DNA metabolism, and this affects the mean cell volume (MCV) and mean cell hemoglobin (MCH), two of the red cell indices used in the moving averages determination. These patients thus should not be used when setting up this method as a quality control tool. It is also true that, when using moving averages as part of a quality control program, an out of control situation often occurs when a group of 20 patients includes primarily oncology patients.

Answer to Question 2

ANS: A
Quality assurance evaluates the process from the time a test is ordered until it is reported to the correct patient chart. One of the responsibilities a clinical laboratory has is to get results to physicians and other caretakers in a timely manner; the acceptable turnaround time (TAT) for even one procedure will vary depending on the reason it is ordered. Obviously, an emergency department has a need for rapid TAT. Complaints from caregivers should never be ignored; it probably is not reasonable to tell employees to work faster, and explaining why it takes so long will not help provide good patient care.