Mum has been with me all week down here in Dorset. We ordered a testing kit from blue horizon but pricking her fingers failed to produce enough blood and now she has blood blisters under the skin.
She is returning North tomorrow and we have now got a replacement kit. Anyone any knowledge of where mum can get her blood drawn?
Thanks.
G xx
Galathea, tell her to ask whether her GP practice will do it for a small fee. If not, ask at the phlebotomy dept at her local hospital. I've seen £10-£20 quoted by members. There are phlebotomy services in this link thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/testin...
The other day a fairly reliable source told me that the NHS pays GP surgeries £25 for each blood draw. (Suspect that means individual patient rather than tube of blood.) Sounds a lot of money to me.
Helvella, I don't know how these things are costed but it's cheaper than the mobile phlebotomists fee + travel costs.
When I had this problem - ie. couldn't get enough blood out myself via their finger prick thing - I emailed Blue Horizons. They were really helpful, sent me to my local Spire Hospital to have it done, and didn't charge me any extra! Might be worth contacting them to explain the problems she had and see if they can help your mum?
I did contact them and they offered another kit, thy type where you get a blood draw, for free... but nothing about a phlebotomist.
Xxg
I think someone here mentioned that some Sainsbury pharmacys did blood tests and said they would do them for anyone not just at the request of a doctor. That might be a possibility.
From memory, the phlebotomy wasn't provided by Sainbury - merely co-located. Was it in Cambridge?
Yes it was. I think I have seen pharmacies in other Sainsbury stores though so perhaps they provide the same services for other health boards.
Not in the Midlands apparently... Was worth a try though.
I have had draws for several private blood tests in NHS centres. I just phoned up all the places I normally go and asked their policy. I've always had it at no charge. It was very easy to find a place - but I have had a few wrinkles.
In my area (Liverpool), some phlebotomists facilities will only take blood for tests ordered by the hospital. Others are for GPs and everyone. I have also found that there are at least 2 types of needle/tube, and most facilities use only 1 type, which is incompatible with the others. These don't seem to have clear names or get discussed with patients, so I'm not sure how you find out which you have in hand. I've found by trial and error that South Liverpool is on one system, North Liverpool the other, and one place uses both. This means on one out of about 4 occasions I was turned away, and now I travel to the mixed place, which is a longer bus journey.
Mum says thanks for all the ideas, she feels more confident now and is going to contact the nurses at her doctors first, then the hospital and so on.... Meantime, I am going to practise on oranges.... I wonder how you get a license to draw other people's blood.... I can see a marketing opprtunity here. :-).
Xx g
I'm sure you could find a course in phlebotomy - I don't think it takes all that long to learn, I know my present phlebotomist did a course and then joined our practice - well both of them did, neither of them trained as nurses - suppose you would need some sort of public liability insurance. Think you would need to say it was a career move rather than just an interest in being able to take blood from people 😉
I had bloods done the other day and it was a tube they leave it in then change the tubes they fill. I have a feeling it used to depend where they were sending the bloods off to but I heard that a long time ago so it's probably different now.
Hope your mum gets sorted out soon. Shame the home fingerprick didn't work out. That makes life so much easier. It's when you think how much blood you get from the tiniest little cut then when you actually want blood and you prick your finger with a lancet it decides it isn't going to flow. Typical isn't it.
I got the BH self test too - when I ordered it they said 26 drops onto blotting paper but when it arrived it was to get asizeable amount into 2 small tubes. Afraid I returned it as gift the knit would be easy as your mum has found!
Nurses always had a problem finding enough blood for my blood tests. We don't seem to have as much blood as other 'healthy' people. I think I've solved my blood draw problem. Last time, I took 2 large glasses of water with a little H. salt in it just before the blood draw and plenty enough blood came out straight away!!! I was amazed.
A nurse at my GP surgery took the blood for no charge, the second time of asking. If the first person says no, ring again another day and the next person I asked there said yes they would. The rules seemed a bit vague.
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