WVH remodel vastly improves local lab testing

‘Gold standard technology’ lets patient see results ‘before leaving the hospital’

West Valley Hospital (WVH) is a longstanding beacon located in the heart of Dallas. Beloved by so many, it’s a hospital where patients feel right at home getting outstanding care.

But now — when you take a left at the end of the old hall — you step into another world. The newly remodeled lab has technology that rivals that of large metropolitan hospitals. During an Aug. 6 open house, staff led tours (shown here is WVH Lab Supervisor Matthew Johnson) for community members, leaders and staff.

Salem Health invested $1 million for the project, which started in January 2025 — $700,000 of this was in construction to improve facilities. While the date of the last remodel is uncertain, long-time staff can’t remember any upgrades in the past 25 years.

Facility upgrades include new water lines, electrical infrastructure, more network lines and floor drains, plus re-configuration of space to improve workflow. Equipment upgrades address hematology, coagulation and molecular testing, urinalysis, blood gas analysis, sedimentation rate testing, blood culture, metabolic panels and more — tests that benefit from upgraded machines.

The upgrade also allows WVH to offer local testing for Vitamin B12, Folate, High-sensitivity CRP and expanded urine drug screens, which reduce wait time for results.

And, upgraded analyzers have significantly reduced manual work, allowing scientists to focus on complex tasks such as microscopic analysis and problem-solving. What WVH Lab Manager Kathleen Hainsworth refers to as “gold standard” technology brings faster, more accurate test results.

“It’s not uncommon now for a patient to come in for blood tests, grab lunch or a beverage in the cafeteria, and see test results already in MyChart before leaving the hospital,” Hainsworth said. Before, routine outpatient chemistry testing could take several hours — now results come in under an hour.

Another example of efficiency: Serum pregnancy test time dropped from 27 minutes to just nine minutes.

The WVH lab performs more than 285,000 tests per year, serving eight Salem Health Medical Group clinics and many provider clinics.

Many deserve credit for the upgrade: Salem Health Lab Services Director Jamie Rouse did much of the heavy lifting to champion the project. Contractors and consulting experts who made it happen: Turner Construction; Matt Scott Edwards Architecture, Salem Health Project Management Office, Salem Health Desktop Team, and teams from Networking, Beaker, Facilities, Environmental Services and Salem Health Laboratory – State Street.

Thanks also to our tour guides: Hainsworth, Johnson and Phlebotomy and Specimen Management Outreach Supervisor Victoria Ruman — our scientists who can explain lab technology in a way anyone could understand why we’re so proud of this huge accomplishment at West Valley Hospital.