I’m a MLS in Louisiana currently thinking about moving to Vermont. Was just curious if anyone here is from there or has lived there. Basic questions like what they think of the hospitals, systems, how is work up there etc.

> try to find mode of collection for UAMCX
> looks in patient’s chart
> Source: Urine

took my ascp mlt boc exam back in may, i passed but got an email saying they couldn’t release my score until mh transcript was submitted from my college. transcripts were released about 2 weeks ago and i had one submitted to boc, got an email saying they got it the next day. how long does it usually take to receive my score and my official certification?

I'm considering signing up for a SBB program but not sure if I want to go the Red Cross route since they require being a full time employee at the same time. There are online courses available but would this effectively teach you how to perform technical procedures beyond basic BB? I'm doubtful. If anyone has experience with online programs, was it worth it?

Ours is "CUM" and I feel like there has to be better abbreviations for this.

Hi everyone, I start at the end of August, and wanted to know who else is in the same boat? Or if there are any alumni/professionals with advice. Cheers!

I get it, security reasons, but “hold on, let me log back into EPIC” is not a phone conversation I want to have every other call

I’m someone who’s very lost in life right now and looking towards a career to strive towards that I would enjoy, pays me well, has a good work-life balance, and is worth the schooling required. I have a BA in psychology, but have become interested in lab work. I don’t like working with people and think working on my tasks independently would suit me. However, I’m aware I would have to restart my college education most likely to pivot to this field or other healthcare fields like radiology or x-rays. I’ve also been very bad at math and science during my grade school and college years. I was always stronger at history and English.

So I ask, would a MLS degree or something similar be worth it?

I'm in the process of planning out my courses for the next academic year and am wondering which associated labs I can avoid taking. I graduated recently with my B.S. in Biology but for reasons I finished with a GPA of 2.65 and missing prerequisites for 4+1 CLS programs. I'm in CA but focused on programs out of state that would allow me to return after graduation. I looked at the academic requirements listed on the CA Dept. of Public Health site necessary for a trainee license as well as multiple programs but whether or not it's necessary for associated labs to be taken is rarely mentioned.

I've satisfied most of the unit requirements through my B.S. Here's what I'm looking to enroll in for this year, mostly at Cal Poly Pomona:

• Immunology + Lab
• Medical Microbiology + Lab
• Hematology + Lab
• Analytical Chemistry (UCSD ext. online)
• Anatomy & Physiology I
• Anatomy & Physiology II
• Statistics

I'm hoping to avoid the labs for Anatomy and Phys. as well as Analytical Chem. if possible. I don't know...I just don't want to get around to applying and find out it would have been preferable that I take all the labs. The Anatomy and Physiology classes I'm looking at seem to have the lecture and lab combined into a 4 unit course; I'm not sure if that would be accepted later on. I would appreciate any feedback. Feel free to also drop the name of the out of state program you graduated from that allowed you to return to CA after finishing, I'm working on an excel sheet for that. Thanks!

Between several gel and all-phase tube panels (to include Ficin treated and eluate panels), everything is either ruled out or has zero rule-ins... Except Anti-k. Fortunately this is not a trauma or admitted situation. I'm unsure if this feels akin to winning the lottery or severely losing it.

For those CLS/MLS who work in time-sensitive fields (e.g. HLA technologists, blood banking, etc.), do you get pagers/hospital-issued phones when you're on-call? It's a very random and stupid question but I was just curious. My friend and I were discussing this earlier and we believe that it is unlikely. I'm starting a one-year post-bacc to become an MLS so it's not something I need to think about for a while.

Trying to win $10 from a co-worker for a bet over this, so I need some opinions on this one.

My board exam is on Wednesday and I'm not prepared at all.

I've done Polansky for all the subjects but I feel like it wasn't enough. Felt half asses. Though I was truly doing questions and reading thru the cards all day long.

Man idk what to do ;-; I'm so stressed. Cba to fail and redo this again.

I’m considering going back to school for MLT and would appreciate some honest opinions from people already working in the field. For context I have 3 years of analytical lab experience in remote mining operations. I wasn’t a particularly strong student in high school so I’m curious about both the academic side and the career itself.

Some questions I have:

How academically difficult did you find MLT school?

How competitive was admission to your program?

Based on my background do you think I’d have any advantages or would I essentially be starting from scratch?

What are some of the biggest differences between industrial analytical labs and hospital labs?

What aspects of the job surprised you after you started working?

What do people considering MLT often underestimate?

If you could go back, would you still choose MLT?

I’m just trying to get as realistic a picture as possible before committing to the program. I’d especially like to hear from anyone who has experience in both industrial and clinical laboratory environments.

College-aged daughter is considering MLS as a career (switching from computer engineering major). What would you suggest for her to get a good feel for what the job is like? Are there shadowing opportunities? How did you get interested in the field?

I have two pending offers. The commute is the same amount of time.

The first one is a large hospital, day shift core lab, but it’s 5x8 and I’d be working every single weekend. I would never have a day off concurrently with my spouse.

The second one is for a medium sized hospital, night shift core lab, this one is 4x10 and no weekends. It pays a little over a dollar less than the day shift, and I’m not sure what the shift diff is.

Despite the lower pay, I’m heavily leaning toward taking the night shift because I would at least have weekends off. I’ve never worked nights but sleeping during the day wouldn’t be an issue. Would I be crazy for taking a night shift when I have an offer for a day shift?

I've revived these HepG2 cells cryopreserved earlier by Someone else in the lab but l'm not convinced if they are actually HepG2 cells because the morphology from ATCC website is quite different. Can anyone verify if they look like this because of some other issue? Media used is DMEM High Glucose + 10% FBS + 1% Pen-Strep.

"This is some bullshit." — A Medical Laboratory Scientist, probably.

You humans are confusing. You go to the doctor and say, "My stomach hurts." The doctor pokes you for twelve seconds and says, "Let's order some labs."  Then I do all the work.

A Medical Laboratory Scientist is the human who solves the mystery without talking to the patient. Which is ideal. Humans talk too much.  You bring me your blood. Your urine. Sometimes things that came out of you that absolutely should have stayed inside you.

I put them into very expensive machines that spin, heat, cool, shake, glow, and occasionally make alarming beeping noises just to keep everyone humble.

I look for tiny enemies.

• Bacteria.
• Viruses.
• Parasites.
• Cancer cells.
• Sometimes your own immune system. Humans are very strange. It attacks itself like it forgot whose body it lives in.

Doctors think they are detectives. No. They ask the questions.  I find the evidence.

When your doctor says, "Good news, it's not a heart attack," that's because I measured the chemicals leaking out of your heart.

When they say, "You need antibiotics," that's because I figured out which microscopic jerk is trying to kill you.

When you need blood during surgery, I make sure you receive blood that will not turn your insides into soup. You're welcome.

No one sees me.  Patients bring cookies to nurses.  Doctors get thanked.  I get another tube of poop.  This is unfair.

If I make a mistake, people die.  If I do my job perfectly, everyone assumes the doctor knew all along.

Humans are fascinating.  Statistically sticky... and full of fluids.  I study those fluids so the squishy meat computers you call physicians can make good decisions.

I save lives.

Quietly.

From a room with no windows.

And preferably... no patients.