Desiree Martinez-Nozawa

• Assisted the team on bench whenever there was a call out or they were short staffed; processed specimens, registered patients, performed phlebotomy.
• Maintained responsibility for maintaining laboratory communications with physicians, office staff, and patients, visitors, and vendors.
• Created a variety of patient accounts through registration processes.
• Completed medical records requests for physician offices and patients.
• Fields request for information and supplies from physicians offices and patients.
• Generates custom requisition and help guide tools for offices using our services.
• Completes audits for order and billing accuracy, follows up with offices regarding missing diagnosis and ICD codes.
• Delivered fast, friendly and knowledgeable service for routine questions and service complaints.
• Complaint resolution and de-escalation.
• Balanced the needs of co-workers and multiple clients simultaneously in a fast-paced environment
• Reviewed customer data to assess current issues and determine potential solutions
• Monitored employee performance and safety, conducting and advocating for retraining to correct problems and optimize productivity
• Collected customer feedback and recommended procedural or product changes to enhance future service delivery.
• Reviewed customer data to assess current issues and determine potential solutions.
• Delivered high level of service to clients to both maintain and extend relationships for future business opportunities
• Established and enforced clear customer service goals to keep all employees on same level and working collaboratively
• Identified and corrected performance and personnel issues negatively impacting team and business operations.
• Communicated with internal and external customers in order to provide prompt, accurate, friendly, and quality service, utilized appropriate computer systems to document calls, dispatch couriers, register patients, accession laboratory specimens, and provide information to all customers.
• Responds to requests from physicians and their office staff, process service requests and responds to complaints. Responsible for ensuring physician orders, reference lab results, scanning into the electronic medical record, and ensuring prompt delivery of patient results within a designated time frame.
• Processes and purchased requisitions and maintains technical files required by the departments supported regulatory agencies.
• Identified and corrects errors and process inefficiencies. Assists in identifying at risk accounts and supports in responding to client needs.
• Coordinated with internal departments to maximize operational efficiency across production and administrative areas.

Due to COVID and reduced hours, I was asked to assist with both pathology transcriptionist duties and laboratory services representative duties.

• Edited and proofread documents for accuracy and completeness.
• Facilitated communication between pathologists, clinicians, and other healthcare professionals for optimal patient care coordination.
• Streamlined workflow for pathologists by efficiently managing case files and data entry tasks.
• Contributed to improved patient care by accurately capturing critical information from pathology specimens.
• Ensured proper formatting and organization of pathology reports, facilitating ease of review for clinicians and other medical professionals.
• Demonstrated proficiency in medical terminology and understanding of various types of pathological conditions for accurate documentation purposes.

• Determined root causes of accidents via in-depth investigations and identified potential prevention strategies to mitigate future risk.
• Developed and maintained hygiene programs, including surveys, atmospheric monitoring and hazardous material management plans.
• Trained new employees in proper safety procedures to minimize accidents with proper behaviors.
• Completed all timesheets, traceability forms and SDS documentation on time.
• Resolved quality issues and escalated major problems to quality specialist and Manager.
• Prioritized safety duties to meet deadlines and maintain quality standards while working regular hours.

• Demonstrated adaptability by effectively performing blood draws on diverse patient populations, including pediatric, geriatric, outpatient, inpatient, and challenging cases.
• Coordinated with internal departments to maximize operational efficiency across production and administrative areas.
• Multitasked in a fast paced environment; processing ED specimens, time study blood draws, lab drop offs from outpatient locations to the main lab.
• Counseled patients to ease fears, explain procedures and enhance cooperation and comfort during blood draws.
• Maintained clean and fully operational laboratory equipment
• Packaged and shipped specimens to reference labs daily; ARUP, DLS, Adventist Health Portland, DOH, and Lab Corp.
• Trained new lab staff.
• Obtained a variety of blood samples through venipuncture or capillary puncture using syringes, butterfly needles, and straight needles.
• Processed a variety of specimens that required special handling.
• Coordinated blood draw workflow based on stat, schedule, or outpatient needs.
• Answered phone calls; assisted patients with questions, physicians with questions, and inter departments with lab questions and concerns.

I was appointed lead sterilization tech by the infection control manager, along with my duties of being a lab assistant.

• In charge of taking inventory, maintaining records, following procedures to make sure our hospital was compliant.
• I kept an inventory of sterilization tools for ED, MedSurg, and outpatient clinic.
• Kept an inventory of supply packaging, to prevent expiration, scheduled staff accordingly, to make sure we were always complaint.
• It was my duty to make sure all clinical staff were up to date with techniques as well as are following policies and procedures. I trained all clinical staff in sterilization policies and procedures as well as the lab team.
• Maintained accurate records of all sterilized items, ensuring traceability and regulatory compliance.
• Ensured sterilization quality by meticulously following standard operating procedures and guidelines.
• Offered exceptional customer service while working closely with hospital departments to meet their specific instrumentation needs.
• Contributed to the prevention of healthcare-associated infections with diligent adherence to proper sterilization techniques.
• Managed preventative maintenance schedules for all sterilization machinery, reducing downtime due to repair or replacement needs.
• Promoted workplace safety through active participation in training programs and implementation of recommended practices within the department.

• Maintained, performed testing, on the following machines; Pathfast ( Cardiac), Vitros and alfawasserman (Chemistry), A1c and Sysmex (Hematology), Stago (Coagulation), performed highly complex tests on clinical specimens for diagnostic purposes.
• Recorded known control values from technical instruments to ensure reliability and accuracy in test results reporting.
• Accurately recorded and reported test results according to established procedures. Closely followed trends and techniques in medical laboratory testing.
• Demonstrated testing procedures and equipment to new laboratory personnel.
• Developed and maintained positive customer relationships through effective communication.
• Routinely performed medical laboratory tests, procedures, experiments and analysis to provide data for clinical research studies.
• Created detailed reports summarizing data collected in the laboratory for the research and development, regulatory affairs and marketing teams.
• Correctly prepared laboratory equipment and instrumentation required for tests, research, process or quality control.
• Performed various administrative duties, including data entry and document preparation.
• Promptly and efficiently prepared specimens for distribution to different facilities and labs.
• Improved TAT (Turn around times) reports greatly. Worked alongside manager to prepare TAT reports for Lab and ED. Was able to pinpoint the problem area and worked to improve it. We dramatically changed the TAT for hematology from 25 to 5 minutes, Chemistry from 40 minutes to 20, from 30 minutes for cardiac to 20. I helped organize the lab for easier and faster workflow. This aided in switching shifts.
• Created SOP's, to help with TJC inspection. The previous TJC inspection went from 60 violations, with all of us assisting, we were able to bring the violations down to 8.
• POC coordinator for glucometer technical issues, trained staff, was in charge of entering new strip lots and users for the entire clinical Hospital into the RALS system and made sure users were compliant.
• I was chosen for 2 consecutive years to represent the lab department by presenting at the annual Hospital skills fair to improve communication, concerns, and understanding of Laboratory processes.

I worked in many different areas of the Hospital while being employed since 2012 I have worked in all areas as full time as well as call - in. I assisted whenever or wherever I was needed and was happy to help out the Hospital so there wouldn't be a large increase of overtime as well as overwork Employee's, and make the flow of the Hospital easier.

• I was offered a great opportunity in 2012 to be a ED clerk. I have worked in this position as full time, part time, and call in. While doing so I; registered Patients, answered phones, assisted Patients, Organized Charts & reviewed them for billing purposes, contacted insurance companies to make sure Patient was insurance eligible, Coded the Patients ED charges, tracked and recorded all Patients in multiple systems, collected and tracked Payments, ensured the security of the Hospital, set up AMR Transfers, sent medical Records as well as tracked them, contacted Physicians at all hours for the needs of our ED Physicians, prepared reports for transfers, typed and scanned in information into Cerner regarding Patients charts, worked together with Dr.s and Nurses to provide top care needs for each Patient that came to us with their Health care needs.
• I also assisted in the Business office; registering outpatients, logging their information, set up appointments, got insurance verification to make sure this didn't affect the new ICD-10 regulations, contacted their insurance company to verify their insurance, contacted PCP's for Patients orders, scanned important documents into cerner.
• I also assisted for the PBX (Phones), answering as well as routing all calls that came into the Hospital.
• I worked as a Ward Clerk full time in the med surg unti for about 10 months until they filled the position which involved; answering Patient room call lights, medically supplying the long term care ward, making medical appointments and scheduling a medical pick up, answering phones, talking with Patients and families about concerns with appointments, etc, scheduled CNA escorts for Patients appointments, filed in schedules if there was a sick call, scheduled discharges and made sure they had transportation, scanned important documents into Cerner, kept a filing system for all current Inpatient records, worked with Nurses and Dr.'s for each Patients care plan.