Microscopes are important pieces of equipment used in the management of patient care. Compound microscopes have mechanical and optical components essential to their function and use. It is important to set up microscopes for optimal viewing every time it is used.
Microscopes are important pieces of equipment used in the management of patient care. Compound microscopes have mechanical and optical components essential to their function and use. It is important to set up microscopes for optimal viewing every time it is used.
Microscopes are important pieces of equipment used in the management of patient care. Compound microscopes have mechanical and optical components essential to their function and use. It is important to set up microscopes for optimal viewing every time it is used.
Compound microscopes require regular cleaning to help ensure accurate diagnoses and prevent damage to the microscope. However, microscopes are delicate instruments that must be handled with care.
A microscope is a very important instrument in the laboratory. It is necessary to focus your microscope when viewing specimens to perform a proper analysis and give an accurate diagnosis. This video gives a brief overview of how to focus on a specimen using a compound microscope.
To make an accurate diagnosis, it is necessary to visualize samples as clearly as possible. Köhler illumination is a light microscopy where the user aligns the illuminating optics to produce a uniform background, maximize contrast, minimize artifacts, and reduce stray light.
The most common type of microscope is a compound light microscope. It contains two or more lenses and uses visible light to produce a two-dimensional image of an object viewed through the oculars.
Size is one of the most important physical features when identifying and characterizing an organism in the lab. The exact size of an organism can be determined using a calibrated ocular micrometer.
Microscopes are important pieces of equipment used in the management of patient care. Compound microscopes have mechanical and optical components essential to their function and use. It is important to set up microscopes for optimal viewing every time it is used.
The creation of RNA is made possible by a process called bacterial transcription. Through transcription the information contained in a section of DNA is replicated to form a new piece of messenger RNA (mRNA). This video will cover the three steps to create mRNA.
Before a cell divides and DNA is passed from one cell to another, a complex process occurs. The DNA strands unwind and separate. Each strand makes a complementary strand by adding the appropriate nucleotides.
Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) is a complex molecule of many components. These components can be divided into four main groups: basic elements, nucleosides, nucleotides, and nucleic acids. This video will describe how these four groups build upon each other to create the DNA molecule.
RNA is similar in structure to DNA but is involved in different cellular functions. RNA contains the same basic elements of DNA but with three major differences in its structure. This video will describe these three differences.
In performing molecular procedures in the laboratory, it is essential that you keep contamination down to a minimum. Contamination can affect the results of your test. This video will discuss the necessary steps that should be used in reducing contamination.
Column-based extraction is a method that employs selective binding of nucleic acid to a solid matrix, such as silica that is packed in a column. This video will show this procedure to remove nucleic acid from a specimen.
Gel electrophoresis is a method used for separation of nucleic acid using a porous gel matrix depending on the size of the nucleic acid. This video will show how this procedure is performed.
When performing liquid phase nucleic acid extraction, a method called alcoholic precipitation is used where contaminants such as organic solvents salts and proteins are removed from nucleic acid in a solution. This video will show how the procedure is performed.
Magnetic bead-based extraction is a method that utilizes small particles with a paramagnetic core that binds to nucleic acid. This video will show how the procedure is performed.
Organic extraction is a method used to separate nucleic acid and other cellular components based on their differential solubility. This method uses a mixture of organic solvents, phenol and chloroform, to extract unwanted cellular components from nucleic acid.
Polymerase chain reaction or PCR is a technique for amplifying specific DNA fragments from a DNA template. PCR happens in three basic steps: denaturation, annealing, and extension. This video will show the steps in amplifying specific DNA fragments for the PCR technique.
Detection of PCR products in real time can be accomplished by using fluorescent dyes or probes. Fluorescently labeled probes detect the amount of specific double-stranded DNA sequences.
Donning and doffing Personal Protective Equipment is essential to keeping laboratorians and the public safe from possible contamination. This video focuses on donning and doffing a laboratory coat, gloves, and safety glasses with wrap around sides.
This video demonstrates the donning and doffing of the following PPE: Gown, Gloves, Disposable Face Mask, and Face Shield. The doffing portion of this video demonstrates removing the gown and gloves.
This video demonstrates the donning and doffing of the following PPE: Gown, Gloves, Disposable Face Mask, and Face Shield. The doffing portion of this video demonstrates removing the gown and gloves.
Video Description: This video demonstrates the proper technique for forward pipetting. This video demonstrates how a laboratory professional transfers 500 microliters of liquid from one buffer to another (buffer A to buffer B) using a 100 to 1000 microliter micropipette.
Good Work Practices demonstrates the performance checks, the proper placement of equipment, and additional tasks needed to ensure a good performance of chemical fume hoods.
How Airflow is Affected demonstrates how airflow in a chemical fume hood can be interrupted, altered, and changed by different factors.
Some laboratory procedures require the use of compressed gas cylinders, and it’s important to learn how to safely and properly use them.
Knowing how to properly use compressed gas cylinders is essential for maintaining a safe laboratory. The regulator on a gas cylinder controls the flow and pressure of gas from the cylinder to your laboratory equipment.
Checking your compressed gas cylinder for leaks will help keep your laboratory safe and will also help maintain accurate laboratory procedures. This training video shows how to use a bubble test to check for leaks and changes in gas pressure at both the inlet and outlet valves on the regulator.
Incidents in the laboratory are situations in which an employee is injured or exposed to a pathogen. An incident without an injury is known as a near miss. To reduce risk, laboratories should put various safety controls in place, including the best practice of reporting all incidents.
A laboratory incident, such as a sharps injury, could cause an employee serious harm or exposure to a dangerous pathogen. A near miss is an incident that doesn’t result in an injury or exposure, it’s called a near miss.
Biological, chemical, and physical hazards can put laboratory employees at risk for safety incidents that could injure themselves, fellow employees, the public, and the environment.
Laboratory employees are at risk for coming into contact with biological, chemical, and physical hazards in their daily work.
Working in a laboratory can put an employee at risk for coming in contact with biological, chemical, and physical, and electrical hazards.
Directional airflow in the laboratory is an engineering control that keeps possibly contaminated air in a laboratory from reaching other areas. The constant influx of air directs flow through biological safety cabinets and fume hoods where the air can travel through filters.
Standard operating procedures (SOPs) are administrative controls that help reduce risk from harm by identifying hazards in the laboratory.
Wearing proper personal protective equipment (PPE), like a laboratory coat, can help protect employees from incidents like spilling or splashing biological or chemical hazards on themselves while performing procedures in the laboratory.
Methylene chloride, a chemical used in many laboratory procedures, is a potential cancer-causing chemical that’s been known to harm the brain, liver, and heart after repeated exposure to large volumes.
Continual improvement means making things better to benefit both the customer and the laboratory.
The cost of quality is more than a management tool. It’s a mindset that should be adopted at every operational level of a laboratory. The implications and cost associated with poor quality, or no quality, create ripple effects well beyond the walls of your laboratory.
Clinical and public health laboratories have a responsibility to ensure all specimen and testing activities are of the highest quality. Quality in the laboratory is a continual process and best accomplished using a systematic, managed approach.
Investing in a QMS will help your laboratory efficiently manage organizational assets, quantify the value, and impact a QMS brings, and identify opportunities to continuously improve your laboratory’s mission.
Cleaning Up a Spill demonstrates how to appropriately clean up a spill inside a biosafety cabinet.
Completing Work in a BSC demonstrates the steps to be performed after BSC work is completed.
Factors Affecting Airflow Inside the BSC demonstrates how Airflow in a biological safety cabinet or BSC can be interrupted, altered, and changed by many different factors. These interruptions can lead to potential exposures and/or product contamination.
Preparing for Work in a BSC demonstrates the performance checks, the proper placement of equipment, and additional tasks needed to prepare for working inside of a biological safety cabinet.
Safe Use of a BSC depicts best practices to work safely in a BSC.
This video provides a brief overview of the best practices for safely working with formaldehyde and glutaraldehyde in the laboratory.
The LIMS manages the information workflow through the laboratory. It interfaces or interacts with many of the other systems within and outside the laboratory. These systems can include those that interface with laboratory instruments.
This microlearning focuses on the laboratory technique known as the Gram stain, which is commonly used to differentiate between bacterial species that are Gram-positive and Gram-negative.
This microlearning focuses on the laboratory technique known as the catalase test, which is commonly used to differentiate between bacterial species you will learn the proper techniques with the slide method and the tube method.
This microlearning focuses on the laboratory technique known as the Motility Test, which is commonly used to differentiate between bacterial species by detecting if a bacterium is motile due to the presence of flagella.
This microlearning teaches the proper techniques to be used while performing the Oxidase Test, which is one of several tests that is used to identify Gram-negative bacteria.
To understand how test results are obtained, you need to start from the beginning where specimens are collected. This video will give an overview of specimen collection, testing, and test results.
Data and reports may be sent to stakeholders outside the laboratory. Some examples of where data may be sent include electronic health records, vital records, and a disease registry. This data will follow at least one of two distinct paths. This video will discuss these two paths.
Depending on your laboratory certain tests may not be automated. This could be due to the nature of the test or because the testing instrument does not have a direct interface with the LIMS. For example, some tests require visual observation and manual data entry.
Laboratory data and test results must be properly stored and managed. Proper data storage is a critical component of ensuring data integrity throughout the laboratory process. All data and results must be stored; however, they can live in many places within the laboratory.
Everyone inside and outside of the laboratory has an important role to play in laboratory informatics. The extent of the role and specific responsibilities will vary. This video will discuss specific roles and responsibilities of those working in the laboratory with laboratory informatics.
The post analytic phase consists of communicating testing results and storage or disposal of the specimen. This video will describe how the LIMS is involved in communicating results and determining storage or disposal of the specimen.
Laboratories play a crucial role in supporting public health. Accurate diagnoses of diseases and protection from health threats depend on a laboratory's ability to produce quality data. There are many areas in the life of a specimen workflow where data quality can be compromised.
Throughout the life of a specimen, the amount of data associated with a specimen increases creating various relationships made up of different types of data. This video will cover the different types of data captured in the LIMS, their relationship, and importance to each other.
Data standards provide a method to convey information in valid, meaningful, and actionable ways. Although there are many types of data standards, in this video we will focus on data representation and data exchange standards.
The last step in the analytic process is recording laboratory test results. After testing, results are either recorded manually or through automation into the LIMS. During this process it is imperative that the data is checked for accuracy to ensure incorrect data is not entered into the LIMS.
A LIMS helps laboratories track and manage the workflow of a specimen and its associated data from the time a specimen is received through the reporting of results. LIMS have many capabilities and benefits. In this video we will describe the capabilities, benefits, and limitations of a LIMS.
Informatics is a broad field that encompasses information science, information technology algorithms, and social science. In these videos we will review two types of informatics: laboratory informatics and public health informatics.
Demonstration of performing a direct smear from a specimen in the last step for culturing microorganisms.
Demonstration of performing a gram stain procedure following the American Society of Microbiology’s Manual of Clinical Microbiology Procedures.
Demonstration of the proper technique for performing an India ink stain.
Demonstration of how to perform a potassium hydroxide or, KOH preparation, for detecting the presence of yeast in a specimen under a microscope.
Demonstration of how to perform a wet mount using a bright-field microscope and the proper equipment.
Video Description: Micropipettes are crucial laboratory instruments used to measure and transfer small volumes of liquid. They are suitable for various applications, such as molecular biology, biochemistry, and cell culture.