What the services does
Opening hours
What the service does
The Department of Clinical Microbiology provides comprehensive diagnostic services. It incorporates the:
- Regional Virus Laboratory
- Northern Ireland Public Health Laboratory (NIPHL)
- Regional Mycology Laboratory
NIPHL tests food and water samples and processes 23,000 samples per year.
The department also handles more than 716,000 patient samples per year. These include urine and other fluids, swabs, sputum, stool and blood samples. The tests carried out include:
- routine bacterial culture and antibiotic sensitivity
- mycology culture
- chlamydia testing
- mycobacterial culture
- serology
In addition, the department carries out an extensive range of molecular virological tests. It provides diagnostic investigations for pathogens such as MRSA and Clostridium difficile. Molecular typing is undertaken for Clostridium difficile.
Opening hours
Routine opening hours are Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm. A reduced service is available outside these hours.