St. Elizabeth Laboratory expands, opens pediatric “glow room”

UTICA, N.Y. — The St. Elizabeth Laboratory, an affiliate of the Mohawk Valley Health System (MVHS), has expanded its outpatient laboratory-services testing.

It operates at the St. Elizabeth campus, located at 2209 Genesee St. in Utica.

The expansion of the lab-draw rooms includes a new pediatric room decorated with glow-in-the-dark murals, the organization said in a news release issued Tuesday.

“Laboratory draws can be difficult for children and parents,” Michelle Walters, business manager of St. Elizabeth Laboratory, said. “As the mother of a toddler myself, I find it creates anxiety to know your child is going to be upset. It was my mission to find a better way to provide this critical service.”

In collaboration with BB Designs of New Hartford, the St. Elizabeth Laboratory created a safari-themed room, which includes canvas artwork created by laboratory staff. BB Designs also painted murals of safari animals that illuminate under a black light.

“When the specimen collection procedure is over, the phlebotomist will switch the light switch to activate the black light,” said Walters. “The unexpected change and magic of the room distracts the children and they leave with a more positive laboratory experience. I am so thankful to Angela [Johnson of BB Designs] and her team for their creativity. This was her first time using glow paint and she knocked it out of the park!”

In addition to the expansion, the laboratory-testing equipment has been “upgraded and enhanced to include extensive” automation in the core lab to include new chemistry and hematology equipment.

“Laboratory information has a crucial role in the detection, diagnosis, and a profound impact on the treatment of disease,” Christine Goldman, director of the St. Elizabeth Laboratory, said. “We continuously look at the latest and greatest technology to provide high-quality care to our community. We are constantly expanding our in-house testing capabilities. According to the Mayo Clinic, 70 percent of medical decisions are based on clinical-laboratory results, and this enhanced equipment allows us provide faster results to our providers so they are given timely information to treat their patients.”

St. Elizabeth Laboratory will hold a ribbon cutting and open house in collaboration with the Utica Chamber of Commerce on July 10 from 4:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.

About the laboratory

St. Elizabeth Laboratory offers on-site testing including surgical pathology; immuno-histochemistry procedures; hematopathology; breast-tumor testing as well as gynecologic and non-gynecologic cytology, chemistry, hematology, urinalysis, coagulation, microbiology, parasitology, immunology, blood bank and transfusion services.

St. Elizabeth Laboratory works with Mayo Medical Laboratories as its primary reference laboratory and has access to Mayo Medical Laboratories’ “extensive” selection of laboratory tests and clinical expertise.

Mayo Medical Laboratories is part of the Rochester, Minnesota–based Mayo Clinic, a nonprofit academic medical center.

Specimens for specialized tests taken at St. Elizabeth Laboratory are sent to Mayo Medical Laboratories and analyzed, with results “often available the following day,” per the release.

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com