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One of the most frequent questions we get from patients at House Call Doctor Los Angeles is about how lab draws and lab testing work for a mobile doctor like our own Michael Farzam M.D.
It’s a very good question and, we’re happy to say, we have an excellent answer! Blood draw and testing of urine or stool are as rapid with a house-call doctor as with any medical provider.
Tests from blood draws and specimens of urine and other bodily fluids and discharges perform a few crucial functions: diagnosing the cause of symptoms, confirming the results of home tests (such as for pregnancy or COVID-19), and monitoring a patient’s overall systemic health. These include tests that check on the health of organs as well as metabolic function. The information allows us, for example, to screen for type 2 diabetes by looking at A1C and blood glucose and to ensure patients have a safe balance of essential electrolytes (sodium, potassium, etc.). We can also use blood tests to look at white and red blood counts and determine if an individual might be suffering from a variety of illnesses including infections, leukemia, other types of cancer, hepatitis, lupus, mononucleosis, and even some allergies. We can do comprehensive hormone panels to monitor deficiencies in men and women, as well as a full STD panel to screen for common sexually transmitted infections.
While younger healthy patients without symptoms might not need regular blood tests, as we age most of us will need them more often.
Blood draws are always performed by a first-rate medical professional with the patient’s comfort in mind. Blood tests are safe for just about everyone, including very young children over six months old.*
Nobody of any age loves the needle stick but we always do our best to minimize any split-second discomfort. Once in their bottles, your blood tests will be secured and taken to our lab for analysis.
There’s not much to explain about these except that they are performed in the usual ways using sanitary plastic containers. Keeping our work safe and hygienic at all times is, of course, a priority for everyone on our team.
* “Blood draws up to 3% of blood volume in clinical trials are safe in children,” Acta Paediatrica. Claudia Peplow, Robin Assfalg, Andreas Beyerlein, Joerg Hasford, Ezio Bonifacio, and Anette‐G Ziegler. May 2019.
If you go to a clinic or doctor’s office, your sample will be taken and given to a lab on-site or nearby. Either way, the results will arrive in several days, depending on the tests that are ordered. With Dr. Farzam and House Call Doctor Los Angeles, we will also take your samples to a state-of-the-art medical laboratory nearby and provide you with results in a similar amount of time. Effectively, the only difference between providing blood or other types of samples at home or a doctor’s office is that you’ll be much more comfortable, you’ll save time, and you won’t have to drive through unnerving Los Angeles traffic.
Dr. Farzam and our team know that patients are often very anxious to know their test results. Whether it’s a patient with diabetes concerned about how their A1C is going to turn out, or a potentially life-changing pregnancy test, we always do our best to make sure lab work is timely and, even more importantly, accurate.
Many people tend to put off getting checkups and diagnoses for non-emergency chronic conditions but they’re only making their lives more difficult. The more you and your doctor know about the state of your body, the better you will be able to make decisions that can help you to deal with current issues and prevent new ones that might hurt a lot more than a quick needle stick.
The overall inconvenience of going to a doctor’s office, hospital, or urgent care facility is one more reason for this potentially dangerous type of procrastination. Leading board-certified internist Dr. Michael Farzam and House Call Doctor Los Angeles are here to take away that excuse.
Greater LA’s most trusted resource for doctors on call is always just a phone call away.
Your health is your most precious resource. Give it the respect it deserves and reach out to Dr. Farzam today. Just call the number on your screen or fill out the form on this page today.
Doctor is usually at your location in one hour or less. Call for an appointment.