For Patients
MercyOne offers convenient locations throughout Iowa for blood draws and specimen drop-off. Many tests are completed at MercyOne locations during your appointment, and results are shared directly with your health care provider. Other convenient lab locations are located inside MercyOne Health Plazas and Medical Centers.
- Cedar Falls
- Centerville
- Clinton
- Des Moines
- Dubuque
- Elkader
- New Hampton
- Newton
- North Iowa
- Oelwein
- Quad Cities
- Waterloo
Useful Information
Common Laboratory Tests
This blood test provides the white blood cell count, red blood cell count, hemoglobin, platelet count and a differential.
The National Cholesterol Education Program of the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute have published the following guidelines:
Desirable Level: less than 200 mg/dl
Marginal Level: 200-239 mg/dl
High Level: greater than 240 mg/dl
This cholesterol is considered the "good" cholesterol. Patients with an HDL cholesterol of less than 35 mg/dl should consider dietary modifications, physical exercise, and other risk reduction activities.
Diabetes Mellitus is a condition in which the patient cannot properly metabolize glucose (a type of sugar). The primary symptoms include abnormally high blood and urine glucose levels, an increase in urination, excessive thirst, constant hunger, and sudden weight loss. Diabetes is a risk factor for coronary heart disease and stroke. The prevalence of diabetes in the American population is estimated to be 6.6% or 16.5 million people. Of this number, only 50% are aware of their condition.
Glycated hemoglobin (HBA1C) has assumed an important role in monitoring diabetic therapy and long-term blood sugar control. Synthesis of HBA1C occurs continuously in the red blood cell throughout it's 120 day life span. It reflects the average blood sugar concentration over an extended period of time and remains unaffected by short-term fluctuations in blood sugar levels. It serves as a convenient test for evaluating the adequacy of diabetic control and in preventing various complications.
These tests measure coagulation of the blood and are used to monitor the dosage of blood thinning drugs such as Coumadin and Heparin..
A routine urinalysis is the physical, chemical and microscopic examination of the urine. It provides the closest thing to a full body biopsy through a laboratory test.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Your health care provider will order the necessary lab tests. Unless you are having tests done under the Direct Access Testing program, by law, the lab can only do the tests that your provider ordered. They can be used to monitor your wellness, to determine why you are not feeling well or to monitor a treatment for an illness you know you have.
The person who collects your blood specimen is called a phlebotomist. The laboratory depends on the phlebotomist to collect quality specimens to produce quality lab results. The phlebotomist is trained to do this in a professional, skillful, safe and reliable manner.
Nobody particularly enjoys having his/her blood drawn. The phlebotomists are highly trained, and they will do their best to collect the specimen as painlessly as possible. However, they will have to use a needle to obtain a blood specimen out of your arm or they will poke your finger with a very small object called a lancet. There will be some discomfort, which will be similar to a bee sting.
Your specimen goes to our laboratory to be tested. Our highly-skilled medical team of pathologists, technologists, technicians and specialists work together to determine the presence, extent or absence of disease and provide valuable information needed to evaluate the effectiveness of treatment. We know your provider will base your treatment on our results. We are committed to giving your provider accurate and precise results in a timely manner.
Your specimen still comes to the laboratory to be tested by the same medical lab team.
Our laboratory will send your test results to the health care provider who ordered the test. By law, we can only give your results to your provider. Your provider will give you the results either by phone, at your next office visit or by mail. If you are unsure of how you will get your results, please call the provider’s office that ordered the tests.
The majority of laboratory testing is performed the same day as the specimen is collected and your provider’s office should have these results the following day. Some tests may take longer if the specimen is sent to an outside reference laboratory. Culture specimens or biopsy specimens may take as long as three days because of the nature of testing these specimens.
The provider who ordered your tests will be the one to explain your results to you. Because your provider is the one who knows why they ordered the tests, they are the best ones to see how the results fit into your total health care.
The website: www.labtestsonline.org is a public resource providing accurate information about laboratory tests.
