What do we do?
The Microbiology department is committed to providing and maintaining a high quality and timely laboratory service for the diagnosis and management of infections. We also provide clinical support and Infection Control advice taking into account the needs and requirements of its users and within available resources.
The department provides a 24 hour service, 365 days a year. We serve both East Surrey Hospital and Crawley Hospital, as well as GP surgeries in the surrounding areas. The laboratory has accreditation with CPA (UK) Ltd. Our team consists of three consultant microbiologists, the operational manager, biomedical scientists, medical laboratory assistants, clerical and secretarial staff.
We process approximately 215,000 samples a year including blood, urine, faeces, blood culture, sputum, swabs and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). We diagnose infection in the body caused by pathogenic (harmful) bacteria and viruses and advise on antibiotic treatment where appropriate.
Our laboratory is equipped with the following equipment:
• iLab-Apex Pathology computer system (electronic ward/GP ordering)
• Bactec 9240 Blood Culture system
• Abbott Architect Blood Analyser (Bacterial and viral antigen/antibody detection)
• Mini Vidas Blood Analyser
• Probetec ET Assay for Chlamydia detection
• IQ Sprint 200 IRIS Urine Microscopy Analyser
• Bactec MGIT 960 system for Mycobacteria (TB)
