This series of articles on tips for coping with medical testing and test sampling was written by Nancy Williams.

The complete series includes: Coping with Test Sampling, Common Tests, Tips on Blood Testing, Tips to Help Children through Their Medical Tests, and Tips to Help the Elderly through Their Medical Tests.

Sources for these articles include:

Illustrated Guide to Diagnostic Tests, Student Version. Lewis JV, ed. Springhouse, PA: Springhouse Corp., 1994.

American Medical Association Complete Guide to Women's Health. Slupik RI, ed. New York: Random House, 1996:126.

Caregiving: A Step-By-Step Resource for Caring for the Person with Cancer at Home. Houts PS and Bucher JA, eds. American Cancer Society, 2000:233-240.

About Site on Mental Health Resources. Available on the Internet at: http://mentalhealth.about.com/health/mentalhealth/library/weekly/aa072798.htm. Accessed May 2001.

Thompson, ED. Introduction to Maternity and Pediatric Nursing. 2nd ed. Philadelphia, Pa: W.B. Saunders Company, 1995:577.

Dr Koop.com. See the articles on test/procedure preparation for infants, toddlers, preschoolers, and adolescents. Available on the Internet at: http://www.drkoop.com. Accessed June 2001.

American Medical Association Family Medical Guide. 3rd ed. Clayman CB, ed. New York: Random House, Inc., 1994:767.

Rob C, Reynolds J. The Caregiver's Guide: Helping Elderly Relatives Cope with Health and Safety Problems. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1991.

Interviews
Rebecca Elon, MD, MPH, Medical Director of North Arundel Senior Care, Severna Park, Maryland.
Joy Goldberger, MS, CCLS, Education Coordinator, Child Life Department, Johns Hopkins Children’s Center, Baltimore, Maryland.

Saralynn Pruett, MT (ASCP), Phlebotomy Supervisor, Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, Mayo Foundation, Rochester, Minnesota.

Karen Szafran, CPNP, nurse practitioner, pediatric practice, Alexandria, Virginia.

Myra Daly, PT (ASCP), Phlebotomy Supervisor, Northwest Community Healthcare, Arlington Heights, Illinois.

Joan Kosiek, MT(ASCP)SH, point-of-care consultant, Northwest Community Healthcare, Arlington Heights, Illinois.

Richard Flaherty, Executive Vice-President, American Association for Clinical Chemistry, Washington, District of Columbia.