The Cleveland Clinic London opened in April 2022, and Sonic Healthcare UK won the tender to provide its laboratory services.
When the job of managing the laboratory at London’s newest hospital came up a few months ago, Donna jumped at the opportunity to return to the company she loves, and a culture she finds supportive and progressive.
After a career as a Biomedical Scientist spent in both the NHS and at Sonic Healthcare UK, and as a laboratory manager for the past five years, Donna’s primary expertise has been in Blood Transfusion and Haematology. The Cleveland’s lab is multidisciplinary which has meant she is now enjoying expanding her portfolio to include Microbiology and Biochemistry.
Because of the relative newness of the whole operation, the repertoire of services is expanding all the time. This means much of Donna’s time is spent forming relationships throughout the hospital to ensure the lab is on top of any new testing requirements, and ensuring their delivery.
Patient-centred care
The lab now employs 19 staff, operating a 24/7 service. Onsite, it offers Blood Transfusion, Haematology, Biochemistry, and a small amount of Microbiology. Anything that it can’t do is sent to the Halo Building.
As well as a host of new clinical and diagnostic developments in the pipeline, Donna is looking forward to the introduction of a new Blood Transfusion LIMS IT system, Safe Trace, that will be launched shortly.
Keep on rolling
If working at the Cleveland clearly requires Donna to be nimble on her feet, so too does her hobby: Donna is an accomplished skater hockey player, having been involved with the sport at national and international level for many years.
With the demands of a new and dynamic hospital laboratory, as well as maintaining her sporting commitments, Donna is clearly someone who thrives on pace!
“Although the number of patients isn’t particularly high, as one of the world’s leading hospitals in terms of innovation and adoption of new technology, it undertakes quite complex surgeries. The patients’ acuity, the requirement of nursing care, is exceptional. It means that the range of tests we have to do is extensive, and every day, I’m learning about a new test.”