The Capio Clinic’s Experience of HemoCue® HbA1c 501
The Capio Clinic has been using and evaluating the HemoCue®HbA1c 501 System for a couple of months. The system is used at the Point of Care for HbA1c testing, a glycated form of hemoglobin, to identify the average amount of glucose present in patients’ blood over the past three months. Jenniefer Lindh and Carina Svensson are both working as nursing assistants at the Capio Clinic. We asked them about their experience of HemoCue®HbA1c 501 System.
“I don’t see a single reason not to use HemoCue®HbA1c 501”
As a diabetes nurse and mother of a child with diabetes, I don’t’ see a single reason not to use HemoCue®HbA1c 501. With this system, I am able to bring my daughter in to get her tested, and then we wouldn’t have to revisit the clinic, which would save us a lot of time, says Jenniefer Lindh.
Before Using HemoCue®HbA1c 501, What Were Your Largest Struggles When Treating Diabetes Patients?
The diabetes patients with more stable diabetes usually have two scheduled appointments per year; once to see the diabetes doctor and then six months later to follow up on the results with a diabetes nurse. Patients with severe or recently discovered diabetes usually have scheduled appointments every three months. One week previous to each appointment, the patients have to visit the clinic to have tests taken that need to be sent to the lab for analysis. The tests may include a number of samples or they include only testing for Hb1Ac, which is often the case for patients with severe or recently discovered diabetes. Waiting for the results to come back from the lab can be very frustrating as it takes time and delays the treatment. Out of our 100 diabetes patients, a large number belongs to the group with severe or recently discovered diabetes that has to visit our clinic multiple times a year. For those patients as well as for our clinic, this is both time-consuming and costly.
What Are the Advantages of Using the HemoCue®HbA1c 501 System?
The HemoCue®HbA1c 501 System not only reduces time and cost, but also optimizes the workflow for diabetes doctors and nurses. When using a Point-of-Care system, it is possible to reduce the total number of patient visits to the clinic. Our patients don’t have to spend as much time or money on extra trips and appointments, and diabetes nurses and doctors can carry out our procedures more efficiently.
“We would switch to the HemoCue®HbA1c 501 System in a heartbeat”
In regards to the competitive price, we would switch from our current system to the HemoCue®HbA1c 501 System in a heartbeat. It saves such a huge amount of time and resources for the diabetes nurses and doctors as well as the lab, says Carina Svensson.
The patients who today have to wait for their results to come back from the lab, will benefit from the HemoCue® HbA1c 501 System as it provides reliable results straight away. Also, when performing the test, we only need to take the tiniest amount of blood, which is always pleasant for the patient compared to having to fill an entire test tube.
Overall, the HemoCue®HbA1c 501 System is really easy to work with.
The test is carried out smoothly and quickly. It only takes about five minutes and the instructions on the screen help keep track of the time. It is a no-brainer to understand how to insert the test cartridges. The test cartridges are stored at room temperature, which saves us a lot of space in our fridge. Another great function with HemoCue®HbA1c 501 System, is that it is connectable to our network and stores the patients’ data. All we have to do is basically push a button and we get access to the patient’s previous result.