Picking the Correct Type of Phlebotomy Cart for Your Hospital
The equipment chosen for hospitals must meet staff, patient, and budget needs. Phlebotomy carts, while seemingly an easy place to cut costs by not implementing them, matter, and picking the correct type of cart for your hospital is crucial.
Read on to learn why phlebotomy carts matter, and how to choose the right blood draw cart for your hospital.
Why phlebotomy carts matter
The equipment provided to phlebotomy teams significantly impacts their performance in day-to-day life. From how well they’re able to perform a blood draw, to the accuracy of each draw, phlebotomy carts can help improve the process from start to finish. Below we examine four areas that can be improved by investing in quality phlebotomy carts for your hospital.
1. Efficiency
Phlebotomy is a demanding job in a fast-paced environment. One study shows that phlebotomists are expected to draw blood at a rate of ten patients per hour. Hospitals should take steps to promote efficiency for phlebotomy departments, and they can do so by providing the correct type of carts for their teams.
Your phlebotomy cart should make every aspect of the phlebotomist’s job easier. The carts should move easily with a simple push or pull and have enough space for every piece of equipment needed. This allows each blood draw to take place in a speedy, organized fashion.
The right cart empowers your team to collect samples efficiently, streamlining your phlebotomy workflows from start to finish.
2. Accuracy
Blood samples directly determine the path clinicians take for individual patient care. The information found in a hospital’s lab provides life-saving information, and without it, treatment plans cannot be made. Providers and patients depend on accurate collection to proceed with curing the ailments.
Hospitals and clinics have many moving parts, and phlebotomists must be careful to collect, label, and deliver samples correctly. By providing safe and quality phlebotomy carts to your team, they’re able to focus on the tasks at hand and avoid the negative effects associated with cramped workstations.
3. Staff safety
Patient and staff safety is a top concern in healthcare settings. Preventing injury in the workplace is one of the most effective ways to keep staff safe in hospitals. It has been found that ergonomic injuries affect 70% of hospital IT staff and 43% of caregivers. The same research found that 95% of respondents said more mobile, ergonomic equipment would improve their health and well-being.
Implementing Altus phlebotomy carts can help mitigate ergonomic injuries. With the smart design and quality build of Altus carts, phlebotomists no long have to reach or bend to grab their materials while performing their job duties. The carts help prevent ergonomic injuries, and provide greater ease of use, creating a safer and more enjoyable work environment. This leads to decreased turnover rates and higher employee satisfaction –– ultimately saving valuable hospital resources.
4. Patient well-being
Phlebotomy carts empower your lab team to do their jobs to the highest standards. By supporting phlebotomy teams, the equipment can offer better patient care and improve well-being. After all, an accurate, safe, and fast blood draw affects every part of the patient experience.
Quality workstations designed to assist with blood draws affect more than staff and their workflows. Having a blood draw cart for phlebotomists can help lower the frequency of blood draw errors, and help avoid laboratory errors. With more than 1 million blood cultures in the United States being contaminated, supporting staff to draw correctly is important. Workstations on wheels empower phlebotomists with the confidence to get the sample right on the first try and keep the nerves of the patient down while they wait for sample collection.
Every action trickles down to inform the patient experience, including choosing the correct type of phlebotomy cart for your hospital.
Things to look for in a phlebotomy cart
As a hospital, you want to do everything possible to promote safe, accurate, and efficient blood draws. The phlebotomy carts you choose play a crucial role in ensuring the phlebotomy department has the necessary resources to do their jobs correctly.
There are a few non-negotiable qualities you want to look for when considering phlebotomy workstations. Keep reading for the top features to look for in a blood draw cart.
1. Ample workspace
Phlebotomists must juggle many pieces of equipment –– plus the samples they draw from their patients. The rounding carts should provide ample workspace to empower your hospital’s team to do their jobs to the highest standards.
An ample workspace promotes sample accuracy while reducing the risk of cross-contamination. It gives phlebotomists the space to have all of their needed equipment in arm’s reach, with additional space to place the samples in their own location. A spacious cart ensures phlebotomists never have to place supply kits on contaminated surfaces like side tables or hospital beds.
2. Storage
Every blood draw requires multiple instruments, devices, and medical equipment to ensure a sample is safely and accurately collected. Your phlebotomy carts should provide adequate storage to keep all equipment close at hand.
When a phlebotomist must collect multiple samples from multiple patients, they don’t have time to waste searching for the right tools. Having storage options such as baskets, and drawers allow phlebotomist to organize their equipment for a quick blood draw. There are also sharp container options that hold all of their used needles, to aid in a contamination-free experience.
By ensuring their workstations have room to store their equipment, you aid in fast, accurate collection.
3. Mobility
Phlebotomists, especially in hospitals, typically travel to the patient to collect blood samples. That means they need a cart built for mobility.
At Altus, we design our blood draw carts to be just that: mobile. Our different caster options roll seamlessly across surfaces and over thresholds, making travel easier for your phlebotomy team.
Additionally, cart designs must prioritize dynamic agility. Your teams should be able to move carts in small spaces and around corners effortlessly. When a phlebotomist brings their cart into a patient’s room, they need a workstation that can slide fluidly from the hall to the bedside, navigating equipment and furniture in the process.
Cart mobility takes the physical strain off your employees and allows them to move quietly and discreetly from room to room.
4. Durability
The phlebotomy carts in your hospital or clinic must be constructed to withstand the rigors of hospital use. From the casters to the legs to the tabletop, you need durable, quality materials.
Phlebotomists cover a lot of ground during a shift, often rolling over multiple surfaces, metal thresholds, across carpets, in and out of elevators –– the list goes on. Add to that the fact that these carts must maintain their rigidity and a level tabletop. It quickly becomes apparent that phlebotomy carts must be designed and built for durability.
5. Organization options
The organization of a workstation is paramount in phlebotomy. Blood samples are collected and evaluated to determine a patient’s health and plan of care. There is no room for error when collecting blood samples. Choosing the right phlebotomy cart promotes accurate collection and storage while the samples travel from the patient to the lab.
Your hospital’s phlebotomy carts should have the space and design that allows the team to keep their supplies and samples neatly organized. Providing equipment that promotes organization reduces the risk of collection or recording errors, improving patient outcomes, and reducing hospital resource loss.
Conclusion
Altus carries a full line of mobile workstations for your hospital to help improve workflows. We engineered our phlebotomy cart specifically for phlebotomists and blood draws. Contact us to learn how our cart designs can help you streamline workflows and create a culture of excellence within your phlebotomy departments.