CHASING A ZEBRA

Elaine C. Stewart, MLS(ASCP)CM What an exciting time to be an Ascending Professional in the laboratory world with our fire burning bright, pushing us full steam ahead through the workday. I am enthralled by the daily mysteries in front of me and the desire to search for answers to those mysteries. The new mystery that…

Cindy Johnson, ASCLS President 2019-20

THE POWER OF BEING UNIQUELY YOU

Cindy Johnson, MS, MLS(ASCP)CM, ASCLS President, 2019-20 Kyle Riding, PhD, MLS(ASCP)CM, ASCLS Secretary-Treasurer Over the last several months, our ASCLS family has faced an unprecedented global emergency. Laboratory professionals from across the globe have been on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic. Our professional family has continued to generate the results that drive medical…

Emilia Marrero-Greene with her daughter and husband

ENDING DISPARITIES WITHIN THE LABORATORY COMMUNITY

Emilia Marrero-Greene, M Ed, MT(AAB), MLT(ASCP) Author Emilia Marrero-Greene with her daughter and husband. The recent deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Rayshard Brooks at the hands of police gave rise to important conversations in our nation. The ASCLS Board of Directors and the Diversity Advocacy Council pledge to focus on discrimination and disparities…

ROOTS TO WINGS

Terese Abreu, MA, MLS(ASCP)CM, ASCLS Region IX Director, 2017-20 Photo by Jason Leung on Unsplash During my lifetime I have seen many protests, including the one that is in the book I am reading right now, regarding preservation of old growth forests. The book begins with roots, and as a biology major, I find it…

NOT ALONE

Cara Bushmaker, MLS(ASCP)CM, 2019-20 ASCLS-Montana President Montana is known as the “Last Best Place.” As I thought about the topic of diversity, I would not have described Montana as a diverse place. I would venture that the feeling I have is largely due to our limited population. I felt my own hesitance echoed by my…

“PROVIDING THE FACE” IN A TIME OF HIDING THE FACE?

Mary Ann McLane, PhD, MLS(ASCP)CM, ASCLS Past President Author Mary Ann McLane has been teaching her neighbors in her retirement village about the difference between antibody and molecular tests, as well as teaching them how to use Zoom. Such an unprecedented spring and summer! COVID-19 certainly has radically changed forever this generation’s definitions of “shelter…

LEARNING FROM A DIVERSE WORKPLACE

James Hollowell, MLS(ASCP)CM, 2019-20 ASCLS Developing Professionals Forum Vice Chair During this past year in my clinical rotations, I was able to experience a wide variety of laboratories and learn from a diverse and talented multitude of laboratory scientists. I interacted with hundreds of hospital employees and worked closely with dozens of laboratory workers at…

INTEGRATED APPROACHES TO UNDERSTANDING NOVEL GENETIC VARIANTS IDENTIFIED THROUGH MOLECULAR DIAGNOSTIC TESTING

Meera J. Patel, MS; Subhasis B. Biswas, PhD; and Esther E. Biswas-Fiss, PhD, MB(ASCP)CM* Novel variants of unknown significance are often discovered through genetic testing, which may give rise to the unclear prognosis of pathogenicity. Integration of molecular diagnostic testing with in silico bioinformatic tools and biomedical research can provide enhanced clarification on disease association…