Laboratory Medicine

The Department of Haematology and Blood Transfusion in the North Glasgow Sector of NHSGCC provides a wide range of services to North and East Glasgow, also to other NHS Providers in the West of Scotland.  

Haematology and Blood Transfusion Service Locations

You can find Haematology Laboratory services at Glasgow Royal Infirmary and Gartnavel General Hospital. There is a rapid results service from our satellite laboratory at Stobhill ACH and we also have a rapid results service for Haematology Outpatients at West Glasgow ACH.

You can find Blood Transfusion Laboratory services at Glasgow Royal Infirmary and also at Gartnavel General Hospital. 

Our Haemato-Oncology Laboratory at Gartnavel General Hospital provides Cell Marker Testing.

Along with the West of Scotland Adult Haemophilia and Thrombosis Centre we also provide Specialist Haemostasis testing at Glasgow Royal Infirmary 

Details of all our services along with other information about us can be found in our Service Users Handbook.

Haematology and Blood Transfusion Accreditation and Regulation

All our staff are fully committed to the provision of laboratory and clinical services that meet the highest standards, we have been assessed and found compliant with the following accreditation and regulatory standards.

• Blood safety and Quality Regulations 2005 (BSQR)
• The Medicines for Human Use (Clinical Trials) Regulations 2004
• The Human Tissues Act 2004
• JACIE
• ISO:15189

The regulatory and Accreditation bodies that assess us are:

• Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).
• Human Tissue Authority (HTA).
• The Joint Accreditation Committee ISCT-Europe and EBMT (JACIE).
• United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS).

Our ISO:15189 certificate of accreditation is available to view and also our accredited scope can be found by clicking on the UKAS logo.

In accordance with UKAS guidance publication Lab 1, “Reference to Accreditation for Laboratories,” Section 5.1. We have chosen to inform our service users of our accredited scope for ISO:15189 by providing a link to our Schedule of Accreditation (scope) which may be found on the UKAS website

Haematology and Blood Transfusion Service Information

Our Service User Handbook contains comprehensive information on how to use the Haematology and Blood Transfusion department’s clinical and laboratory services, including information about the assays and tests that we perform, the type of specimens that we require, reference and therapeutic ranges for our assays and tests and also how to request assays and tests in an emergency or that are urgent.

Within our Quality Policy you will find the principal aims of how we provide our service.

Our Quality Manual also provides information about our organisation, management and the staff structure found in our Department.

Haematology and Blood Transfusion Service Feedback

If you have any comments, feedback, concerns and/or complaints (Feedback and Complaints Policy, User Feedback Form)  about any part of our service please contact either the Technical Services Manager (TSM) or the Quality Manager (QM) their details can be found in our Service User Handbook.

Healthcare scientists are difficult to describe in one sentence. Many  are laboratory based and investigate disease, genetic make up and new scientific treatments. Others involve direct work with patients, for example, measuring the function of a particular organ. Then there are the scientists whose focus is more about engineering, ensuring that medical equipment is working safely or researching new medical technology.

If you’ve ever been given a new treatment, had a biopsy, a scan or a blood, sight or hearing test, it’s more than likely that a member of the healthcare science team was involved.

It’s even possible that the person you thought was a doctor was actually a healthcare scientist. The healthcare science team are involved in over 70% of all clinical decisions in the NHS and you’ll find their fingerprints on many of the latest technological advancements in preventing, diagnosing and treating a wide range of medical conditions (Extract from an article in The Guardian 17th March 2013).

Healthcare Science Career Information

For information on the variety of Healthcare Science careers please visit the websites listed on this page.

NHSGGC offers a wide range of careers in Healthcare science for more information about working for NHSGGC please go to the Recruitment Services page of the NHSGGC website.

Current vacancies in NHSGGC are displayed on the NHS Scotland Jobs Website please follow the link to discover the current available jobs and details of how to apply.

 Information on living and working in Glasgow.

Here you will finds Haematology and Blood Transfusion forms and guidelines related to our service. For further Information and advice please contact the Laboratory using the telephone numbers in our contacts section. More information can be found in our user handbook.

Vale of Leven Laboratory service

On Monday the 12^th August the following changes to the Vale of Leven laboratory service will take place:

1. The Blood Transfusion service will relocate to RAH (the theatre satellite fridge will remain).
2. The Coagulation service will relocate to RAH except for D-Dimers which will become a point of care service Monday to Friday 8.30 to 17.00.
3. The VOL Monday to Friday 17.00 to 20.00 laboratory service will relocate to RAH.
4. The sample transport service between VOL and RAH Monday to Friday will increase frequency to an hourly service.

All questions please email Martin Wight (Martin.wight@ggc.scot.nhs.uk)

DEPARTMENT INFORMATION

The Department of Haematology, Clyde Sector, NHSGGC, comprises main Haematology and Blood Transfusion Laboratory Services at both the Royal Alexandra Hospital and Inverclyde Royal Hospital sites, and a satellite laboratory at the Vale of Leven site

 The Department is fully committed to the provision of a quality laboratory and clinical service, and is accredited by the United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS), using International Standard ISO: 15189, for compliance to the Blood safety and Quality Regulations (BSQR) and The Medicines for Human Use (Clinical Trials) Regulations 2004 by the Medicines and Healthcare Products regulatory Agency (MHRA). 

Our ISO:15189:2012 certificate of accreditation and our accredited scope can be found by clicking on the UKAS logo. 

The Department Quality Policy defines the principal aims towards the provision of this service. The Quality Manual provides information relating to the accreditation, organisation, management and structure of the Department.

The Service User Handbook serves to provide comprehensive information regarding the use of the clinical and laboratory service, including information relating to the Departmental test repertoire, specimen requirements, test reference and therapeutic ranges, and urgent and emergency requests. Upon sending samples to our laboratory please refer to our terms and conditions.

The Department welcomes any feedback – if you have any comments, feedback and or complaints (Complaints Policy) in relation to our service, please contact either the Technical Services Manager or the Quality Manager.

• NHSGGC clinical guidelines

Leaving Feedback

Feedback from service users is highly valued and used to improve our services.

To leave us feedback please complete the online form.

Contact Information

This is the home page for Haematology and Blood Transfusion NHSGGC.

Contact and service information, for each Department in the Clyde, North Glasgow and South Glasgow Sectors, can be accessed below.

Haematology

Haematology is the study of the cause, diagnosis, treatment and prevention of diseases related to blood. It involves  the production of blood and its components, such as blood cells, haemoglobin, blood proteins and bone marrow.

Haemostasis (Blood Coagulation)

Haemostasis is how the human body responds to a blood vessel injury or bleeding. It involves the coordinated effort between platelets and numerous blood clotting proteins (or clotting factors), and ends with the forming of a blood clot and the stopping of bleeding. 

Blood Transfusion

Blood transfusion is the process of how an individual receives blood or blood products. Transfusions are used in a variety of medical conditions to replace lost components of the blood.  Blood Transfusion uses individual components of the blood, such as red blood cells, white blood cells, plasma, clotting factors and platelets.

Haematology Staff

Haematologists investigate, diagnose and treat diseases such as anaemia, leukaemia and lymphoma. They also care for patients with blood-clotting abnormalities and are responsible for ensuring that blood transfusions are safe and available when they are needed. Haematologists are the Biomedical Scientists and Clinical Scientists who work in laboratories and the Medical Staff who work with their patients in clinics and on the wards. Haematologists may be involved throughout the patient’s journey, from the very first hospital visit, all the way through laboratory diagnosis to treatment. Hundreds of thousands of blood tests are carried out every day in the UK.

Regulation and Accreditation

Haematology and Blood Transfusion NHSGGC is committed to providing the highest quality laboratory and clinical services we have been accredited by the United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS), using International Standard ISO: 15189. We have been assessed for compliance to the Blood safety and Quality Regulations 2005 (BSQR)  and The Medicines for Human Use (Clinical Trials) Regulations 2004 by the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). We are assessed for compliance with the Human Tissues Act 2004 (HTA) by the Human Tissue Authority (HTA) and for compliance to the JACIE standards by The Joint Accreditation Committee ISCT-Europe and EBMT (JACIE). 

To find details of each of the individual sector’s accreditation and regulatory compliance then please go to the appropriate sector page.

To look at any sector’s ISO:15189 schedule of accreditation please go to the appropriate sector page or you may click on one of the UKAS logos above.

Our Locations

North Glasgow Sector

• Glasgow Royal Infirmary
• Gartnavel General Hospital
• Stobhill ACH
• West Glasgow Ambulatory Care Hospital

South Glasgow Sector

• Queen Elizabeth University Hospital
• Victoria ACH

Clyde Sector

• Royal Alexandra Hospital
• Inverclyde Royal Hospital
• Vale of Leven Hospital

For queries about the service please contact the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital Biochemistry Department on 0141 354 9060.

About the service

The Scottish Biologic Drug Monitoring Service is delivered by the Biochemistry Dept. within the Lab Medicine Building on the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital site, Glasgow.

The service currently delivers Infliximab and Adalimumab levels and their respective total anti-drug antibodies (ADA) for optimising care predominantly in gastroenterology patients with inflammatory bowel disease. The service attained UKAS accreditation (2019) and is working with IMMQAS and others to improve the EQA understanding for drug and ADA assays. The service uses both WHO standards for drug levels and a patient pool sample for ADA assay to monitor performance. It is involved in sample exchange with other laboratories.

The service employs a reflex ADA testing strategy based on drug level result. When a drug level result is within or higher than the therapeutic target range, and when ADA level has previously been undetectable, reflex ADA testing is not routinely performed. Since the introduction of reflex ADA testing approximately 50% adalimumab samples and 37% infliximab samples have not had a reflex ADA test performed.

There may be some clinical scenarios where ADA titres are desirable even when drug level results are therapeutic. Requests for additional ADA testing should be indicated clearly at the time of test request or can be arranged by contacting the lab directly.

During 2019 there were 2821 Infliximab and 2920 Adalimumab samples analysed from health boards across Scotland.

TDM tests should be requested according to local biochemistry/immunology laboratory requirements. The previously used paper request forms are no longer required. Local teams are encouraged to collate data related to TDM use and outcomes as this may be required to sustain future rounds of service funding.

Specific Rheumatology guidance

• EULAR Guidance Document on Therapeutic Drug Monitoring
• Rheumatology guidance.

Specific Gastroenterology guidance

• Gastroenterology Guidance
• Gastroenterology Quick Reference Guide.

Vedolizumab drug level and antibody testing

Vedolizumab drug level testing is now available. The utility of testing drug and anti-drug antibodies for vedolizumab has yet to be fully ascertained. Target drug levels for vedolizumab have not been clearly established. The current evidence is covered in these articles:

• Science Direct Article
• Oxford Acedemic Article
• BMC Article

Vedolizumab testing is not part of the nationally commissioned TDM service. The cost per sample is £20.

In order to gather clinical data regarding the benefits of vedolizumab drug level testing, please complete and enclose a completed request form with each sample. This information will be used to try and secure UKAS accreditation for vedolizumab drug level testing. Vedolizumab Request Audit Form.

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Clyde Biochemistry Laboratories (those based at Royal Alexandra Hospital, Inverclyde Royal Hospital and Vale of Leven Hospital) has been accredited with UKAS to standard ISO 15189:2012 for much of our test repertoire. The certificate of accreditation is available online.

The scope of our accreditation includes the majority of the tests performed by our laboratories, with a small number of tests not falling within our accreditation status (for example, no fluid analyses (on fluids other than CSF, urine or blood / serum / plasma) are accredited) – see the link above for details of our accredited scope.

Specialist services including Protein Electrophoresis and less often requested endocrine assays are based at RAH. 

All routine GP work within the Clyde Sector is also based at RAH.

Please accept our apologies for the behaviour of links on this webpage. This is due to a global setting which is outwith the Biochemistry Department’s control.

Full details of the service provided by the Laboratory can be found in the Laboratory Users Manual.

A list of all services currently available in Scotland can be found at National Services Scotland (Test Directories).

Full details of the services provided by other Scottish Genomic Network Laboratories, including request forms, can be found on the Aberdeen, Dundee and Edinburgh laboratory websites.

A list of all genomic tests commissioned by NHS England for rare and inherited disorders, and cancer can be found in The National Genomic Test Directory.

Please note due to significant staffing issues and service optimisation, the laboratory is currently experiencing backlogs to the following services:

Analysis and reporting for FFPE FISH services. This includes HER2 analysis for Breast and Gastric cancer referrals, FISH assays for Lymphoproliferative Disorders (including MYC, IGH-MYC, BCL2, BCL6 etc) and Lung cancer (ALK and ROS1). (09/10/24).

We endeavour to clear these backlogs as soon as possible. Please continue to contact us to flag urgent cases and we will do our upmost to prioritise. The department is confident that this is a short-term interruption that should be resolved by a number of mitigating actions, including cross-training and active recruitment and we will update further here as soon as possible.

Laboratory Genetics forms part of the West of Scotland Centre for Genomic Medicine and is co-located with the Clinical Genetics Service at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow. The Laboratory provides a comprehensive diagnostic genetic service for the patients of the West of Scotland (population >2.7 million) and offers specialised testing to the whole of Scotland, the UK and overseas. 

The laboratory is a member of the Scottish Strategic Network for Genomic Medicine, with laboratories also located in Aberdeen, Dundee and Edinburgh. The Laboratory Services are funded by National Services Division of NHS Scotland (NSD) and are commissioned to work together to provide a comprehensive genetics service to the patients of Scotland.

The Laboratory Genetics department is accredited by the United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) to ISO 15189 standards. For more information see Accreditation and Quality Management section under Information for Service Users.

More Information