Tripler speeds up
Coumadin blood test

Tripler Army Medical Center patients who take the blood thinner Coumadin no longer have to wait to have blood drawn from a vein to test for adjustments.

The test is performed now in the EKG clinic on the fourth floor from 6 to 11:45 a.m. on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays.

And only a finger-stick is needed so the blood can be analyzed, said Capt. Richard Diaz, head nurse of the Coumadin Clinic.

Coumadin (Warfarin) is prescribed for heart and stroke patients and used in other fields of medicine to prevent or treat improper blood flow, clotting and its effects.

Tripler's more than 300 Coumadin Clinic patients previously had to visit the outpatient laboratory to have blood drawn by venipuncture, resulting in discomfort and often long lines waiting for the test, Diaz said.

"Patients would wait until they got home to receive instructions, either by the Coumadin clerk calling or receiving a message on their answering machine," he said, adding that this was often confusing for the patient.

Diaz and Col. (Dr.) Thomas Dove, chief of the Cardiology Department, worked to improve the system with elimination of painful blood draws from the vein and immediately providing accurate results.

Coumadin Clinic patients can make an appointment, have blood drawn by a finger-stick and find out from a staff cardiologist within minutes if adjustments are necessary. The entire process takes 10 to 15 minutes.

The new testing method also decreased the waiting period for other patients in the laboratory and "is a change for the better all the way around," said Lt. Col. Barbara Gilbert, nursing director of Tripler's Department of Medicine.

Besides being faster and more convenient, she said patients can discuss the results and any needed dose adjustments with Diaz or another staff member.