Blood Analyzers bring faster treatment in Maysan

By Staff Sgt. Lester Yancey, 3rd Bn., 29th FA Regt.August 4, 2010

Blood Analyzers bring faster treatment in Maysan
(Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

Hospitals in the Maysan Province received some much needed help for the diagnosis and treatment of diseases, recently.

The Maysan Provincial Reconstruction Team, with support from Battery A, 3rd Battalion, 29th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, provided the Ministry of Health with six Beckman Coulter Auto Blood Analyzers.

Physicians use information generated by the blood analyzers to diagnose diseases and make life-saving treatment decisions.

Beckman Coulter develops, manufactures and markets many products designed to simplify complex biomedical testing. The company's diagnostic systems are found in hospitals and other critical care facilities around the world.

"By installing this equipment, other hospitals in and around Al Amarah will follow the province's positive example," said 2nd Lt. Timothy Lewin of Pueblo, Colo., a field artillery officer with 3rd Bn., 29th FA Regt.

These new analyzers will enable Maysan hospitals to perform an array of tests on blood samples in a fraction of the time it previously took. These analyzers allow doctors to run more specific tests and receive much more accurate data results, said Dr. Majeed, a physician at the Al Sadar hospital.

"These analyzers will likely have a large impact on the resources and quality of care Maysan hospitals are now able to offer their patients," Majeed said. "Without these analyzers, hospitals in Maysan that already suffer from understaffing and lack qualified medical professionals would continue to waste manpower and resources testing individual samples, only to receive minimal results."

Instead of conducting one test at a time, such as testing for a potassium reading, the analyzer has the capability to test for sodium, potassium, chloride and glucose readings all at once, allowing doctors to diagnose patients much faster.

"The installation of this equipment will allow the staff to maximize their effectiveness," said Capt. Sung Hong of Stanton, Calif., a civil affairs officer with the Civil Liaison Team that works with the Maysan PRT.

Members of Battery A regularly escort PRT members to Al Sadar and Al Zahrawi hospitals to check on the progress of the analyzers.

"The analyzer systems are extremely important when it comes to improving the current health care systems in Maysan," Majeed said.

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