Carolyn Sabady, PBT(ASCP) It is no secret that phlebotomists and laboratory personnel carry a significant amount of weight on their shoulders. Whether they are assisting in a stat situation, processing a sample, or acting as a liaison between the patient care team members and the medical laboratory technologist, laboratory personnel need to be resilient. Building…
James Hollowell, ASCLS Developing Professionals Forum Vice Chair University of Louisiana-Monroe MLS graduate Jennifer Nguyen at the Spring Into Health event in Monroe, LA. Students used “glitter bug” solution and UV lights to show kids how dirty their hands can get and taught proper hand washing technique. Recruitment events bring visibility to our field and…
Kim Alexis Espejo, ASCLS-IL and Region VI Developing Professional Chair The MLS Club at the University of Illinois Springfield participates in campus events to promote the club and advocate for the medical laboratory science profession. Medical laboratory science (MLS), the profession, program, and in my case, club, was never a well-known entity at the University…
Patient Safety Corner Stacy E. Walz, PhD, MS, MT(ASCP), ASCLS Patient Safety Committee Chair One of the many wonderful resources easily accessible by laboratory professionals, other healthcare professionals, and the general public, is the blog, Lab Testing Matters, sponsored and managed by COLA. For several years now, the ASCLS Patient Safety Committee has proudly been…
Medical laboratorians respond to COVID-19: ASCLS sends a letter to Congress, free access to personal wellness keynote, attend a Virtual Break Room and/or Virtual Happy Hour, sign up for upcoming free webinars, and more.
Cindy Johnson, MS, MLS(ASCP)CM, ASCLS President Many of you have been asked to step into a leadership role that you may not have felt qualified to take on. However, someone had confidence that you could fulfill this role, perhaps with some guidance and training. Being a leader may not be easy, and that is the…
Jean Bauer, MLS(ASCP)CM, ASCLS Region V Director Photo credit: Maciej Ciupa Are leaders born with the ability to lead, or is leadership learned? The answer is both. The road to becoming a leader can start in different ways. Some professionals aspire to be leaders. They have the desire and drive to want to lead, whether…
Diane Valentin, MS, MT(ASCP)MB Twice a year I am “forced” to look at the ASCLS Code of Ethics.1 Not because my boss is making me do this but because I am doing it for the sake of my students. In our freshman MLS orientation class, I introduce them to this document as a way to…
Jessica Lawless, MLS(ASCP)CM, ASCLS Ascending Professionals Forum Vice Chair Photo credit: Josef F. Stuefer As a graduate of Texas A&M University, which has one of the most active alumni organizations in the world, I have always understood the importance of networking. This is one of the reasons I jumped at the opportunity to join—and stay…
Chloe Thompson, MLS(ASCP)CM The symptoms of burnout range from increased cynicism and decreased ability to concentrate on our tasks at hand to disrupted sleep, headaches, and other physical symptoms. Photo credit: Rolf Dietrich Brecher Burnout. We all know the feeling—where work has somehow infiltrated every aspect of life, how stress is amplified, and there never…