Thank-you to all who replied to my weekend coverage questionnaire. Everyone
from major  medical centers to rural community hospitals responded! I
received 21 responses, and the answers were not what I expected, in some
instances. For the most part, 300+ bed hospitals did provide coverage for
Saturday only. This usually consisted of 8 hours or less (i.e. "until the
work was done"). There were two (one 700 bed, one 400+) in this category
that did NOT have any weekend service. Weekend services had been provided
there in the past, but were cut along with the budget. Only one place had
both Saturday and Sunday coverage. Generally, less than 300 bed hospitals
either did not provide weekend service, or provided some sort of "call"
coverage (e.g. only come in for STAT's, when needed). Out of all the
respondents, only one place performed immunohistochemistries on the weekend;
only a few performed special stains (and then, only select stains like
pneumocystis). Thank-you all again for taking the time to respond! If any
would like a further breakdown, I have the responses compiled on an EXCEL
spreadsheet (of course, leaving out originating hospital/service name),
Sue O'Brien, Histology Supervisor
Burdette Tomlin Memorial Hospital
Cape May Court House, NJ  08210
e-mail: histo@bthosp.com <mailto:histo@bthosp.com>