Laboratory

Northern Virginia Pediatric Associates, P.C. is proud to have a high quality, CLIA-compliant, laboratory within our office building. Our in-office laboratory is much more convenient for patients and their families. It also enables your doctor to receive lab results in a more timely fashion in order to more quickly diagnose and treat your child. Most tests can be performed in our lab.  Our lab manager, Coni Evans, M.T., has over 25 years experience and along with our highly qualified lab technicians, is especially skilled in collecting blood and other samples from infants and small children.

In order to cover operating costs and maintain our high quality of care, a fee is charged to have your child’s blood drawn by our technicians.  In addition, a specimen handling fee will be charged for samples sent to an outside laboratory.  If you do not wish to pay these fees, you may go to the patient service center of the laboratory that is contracted with by insurance company.  This information can be obtained on the back of your insurance card or by calling your insurance company.

Laboratory hours are Monday through Friday 8:00 am to 6:30 pm and Saturday 8:00 am to noon.  In order to best serve our patients, we ask that walk-ins (with doctor’s orders) and sample drop-offs be done Monday through Friday between 8:30 am and 5:00 pm and on Saturdays between 8:30 am and noon. If your physician requests that you follow up with additional tests, please be sure to stop by the front desk for your fee slip and orders prior to coming down to the lab.

Instructions and Helpful Hints for Lab Tests:

Please be sure to have lab orders from your doctor prior to going to the lab. Please also be sure to check out with your fee slip before leaving.

Fasting: If a fasting test is needed, your child should have nothing by mouth, except water, 12 hours prior to the blood draw.

Stool Tests: Please check with the lab for specimen requirements and specific stool collection kit needed PRIOR to collection.  Stool not collected with a specimen kit can become contaminated and test cannot be preformed.

AM Urine Collection: If your doctor requests an early morning urine specimen, follow instructions below:
• On the night of the examination, have child void before going to bed.
• Child should be lying down in bed.
•Urine specimen should be taken as soon as the child wakes up and brought to the lab as soon as possible.