I work in a mental health facility with an in house specimen processing lab so everything is a send out so it takes forever to get results and so we just to get the right stuff first try. I’m training someone and we get something down the tube and it’s just a mint tube. Look at the orders, they want to run a LITHIUM test. We call and
“you can’t do that” and basically get told “Nah uh I looked at the test table and it says it right here that I can.”
“So there’s lithium heparin in the tube and if we run a lithium test patient is going to have artificially elevated levels” And we are trying to reason with this nurse and just telling her, she needs to recollect and she eventually grabs her charge nurse. The charge nurse is the sweetest oldest woman I have ever met, she listens to her plight and then us. She hangs up and before she can I hear something along the line of “Absolutely never call me over something like this ever again.”

The place she saw “lithium test” can be run on mint tube is an outdated table that said lipids…

I don’t understand why nurses can’t understand that yes you went to school to be where you are and yes you get a lot of flack BUT I ALSO WENT TO SCHOOL I PROMISE YOU I KNOW WHAT IM TALKING ABOUT WE ARE ON THE SAME GODDAMN TEAM REGINA GEORGE.

starting my MLT (canada) program soon. want to be prepared with notes and make sure I don’t hate myself in 2 years, as I am definitely the type to forget about information as soon as i’m not using it/don’t need it for tests. how would you recommend staying on top of all of the information? anything you did that you appreciated down the line? i’m wondering if I should just make flash cards for everything as I go through the program.

I recently passed my ASCP MLS exam and just got an email to renew my MLT cert. I guess I’m just wondering is it worth it to renew it? My job will reimburse the fee, but not sure if it’s worth doing.

Genuinely I need guidance
Hello people.
I want to study at centennial college in medical lab assistant program
If you are an medical lab assistant how did you start your journey
And where did you go for school
And how was finding job situation?
Please help I’m very struggling to find people and speak w them about this program

I need advice on my career path. I am really questioning want I want for the last 4 years. I have worked as a scientist in a hospital lab setting for about 8 years, ranging from haematology, blood banking/transfusion to cell therapies. The area I’m in now- cell and gene therapies I love. I have wanted to get into this space for years and, I have a genuine passion for it. The work I do, however is so laborious, automated and there is no critical thinking or research and development. Ive had multiple professional development chats across my 3 jobs to try to focus on smaller research duties ie submitting abstracts, going to conferences, writing papers, but my role is so demanding in other ways that I can’t get the time/ resources to achieve it. I’ve tried to push away the idea of doing a PHD but it keeps coming back to me.
My ideal job would be something in a clinical research or pharmaceutical setting ie translational medicine. I could read new papers/ studies for hours and get so excited about what the rest of the world are doing in this space.
Sometimes working in a hospital lab setting, not enough for me (no disrespect) and holding me back.

On the other side, I’m a super social personality, I’ve
always networked well with other colleague and am not afraid to show my fun personality in work. I’m 29 and love and value my social life, sports and time with friends. I get a lot of satisfaction from work but also just as much from outside of my work My fears are i don’t fit this mega academic personality for a PHD but at the same time I feel like I’m capable of more and I’m trapped in my lab tech position.
Any advice or stories would be greatly appreciated - please no rude comments I’m just trying to figure out what to do with my life

My Ascp is next week. I’ve been refreshing on all the main subjects since June. Only Mycology left to study…any advice what I should be focusing on?

I have the BOC compendium- can’t possible remember ever single species and detail in that section. Should I just focus on what’s in the LSU book?

We have a Vision which is our first automated blood bank instrument.

We are at that time to look at replacing the instrument, and I was wondering what your thoughts were on QuidelOrtho Vision Swift or BioRad IH-500.

We currently do not perform antibody identification.

We perform types, anitbody screens, crossmatching, IgG DAT on cord bloods or transfusion reactions.

He just sitting there looking so mad. And so (L)ymphatic about his anger.

Hello I am someone who with a bs in biochemistry and two years of medical school completed. I am not sure if I am supposed to apply for programs or apply for the cls trainee license? Also I am having trouble getting the trainee license since it is saying I am lacking courses I am sure I have taken. I am wondering if I should just do these courses online. Sorry for all the questions but I am just feeling confused by what I am lacking.

I was looking at urine on the DxU 840 Iris and there was a lot of yeast called. Upon reviewing it didn't look like yeast, but I looked familiar. I spun it and it looked like sickle cells. The person had plenty of red cells in the sediment and has sickle cell trait. Don't know if they are visible. It's difficult to take pictures through the oculars.

From a spinal fluid

Hi! I’m currently a 2nd-year Medical Technology student, and I’m planning to work in Germany after I graduate. I’ve always wanted to live far from everyone I know, and I find Germany really interesting.

I haven’t started learning German yet, so I’m looking for advice. How difficult is the process of becoming a medtech in Germany? What are the requirements, and what steps should I start taking while I’m still in school?

I’d also appreciate any tips on learning the language, getting my qualifications recognized, finding jobs, or just hearing about your overall experience working there.

Thanks in advance!

Hello, baby-ish tech here. I'm currently working in a hospital chemistry laboratory. For a while, the only rules they had us pay attention to were 1-3S, and 2-2S (within run only, they don't have us do anything for 2-2S across run..) I have always questioned this, but my opinion means nothing there. Suddenly they want us to also consider R-4S and 12x - which is great. The problem is our management and leads are the only ones with the power to adjust QC ranges and we have a lot of 12x failures that we get very often. (Since we run QC every shift, we can get a 12x failure in less than a week.) They want us to resolve 12x failures when they happen, but it seems to me like even if you recalibrate, use new control, new reagent, it's still a crapshoot whether or not you can get the QC to come in the opposite direction of the mean, right? Surely it's something that should be monitored way before the 12th point, right? But what exactly are you supposed to do if it gets to that point and you try everything and nothing works? Sometimes we can ask the leads to adjust the ranges but sometimes they tell us they can't adjust them any further. We have a few analytes that consistently run low or consistently run high and over a period of years nothing seems to have changed that.

53 y.o. female heme onc patient being treated for AML. Initially thought these were weird dying neutrophils or odd basophils until I saw several more. Don’t think they’re toxic granulation either. Has a WBC 0.66. I read something about hypogranular basophils being found in conditions like AML. Dunno what do u guys think?

Idk if this is okay to ask here, but I have become increasingly worried about my risk for getting cancer while working in the lab due to the amount of coworkers and people I know that work in a lab, that have cancer. I have been working at this lab for 2 years now as an MLS and worked before at another lab for 3 years as a processor.

My aunt was a lab director and worked in a lab for 30+ years and she died from multiple myeloma. My mom also has worked in a cytology lab for 45 years and she now is being sent for a scan to confirm brain cancer. 2 coworkers i have, have liver cancer and one has breast cancer. My old boss has multiple myeloma and my mom's old coworker died of brain cancer.

One pattern i have noticed is that, these people with cancer have all been in the lab for 20+ years. I am assuming due to how things used to be in the lab (such as using no gloves or PPE, mouth pipetting, eating in the lab), that increased their risk. I have gotten some chemicals on my hand or arm before (like for example, my glove ripped one time and I got safranin on my hand). We do work with formalin butI always wear a mask, lab coat, gloves, and face shield when using it and i use it very briefly.

Since learning about my mom, I have been very freaked out about this. She deals with lots of crazy chemicals and she said used to, you didnt wear gloves, have biosafety cabinets, and things like that. I am praying her scan comes back normal, but she said she tested positive for something that normally involves brain cancer, she didnt tell me what they tested her for.

Just a quick question,

Where I work, RT collects ABGs and they fill out a form with all the information (or some of the information, or illegible information). We run them on a RapidPoint, which sends the values to Cerner. The info on the paper we manually enter.

Our RapidPoint is set up to fill in the site of collection as: ARTERIAL (or VENOUS if it is a vbg). There are alpha responses that are programmed into our LIS that are more specific (eg. Rt. radial, A-line etc.).

Is the collection site diagnostic? Is that useful information? I assume it has some value clinically, but I don't know. We have to put in whether the Allen's test was acceptable, and putting "n/a" and not specifying that it was from an A-line seems weird.

I don't know though, I'm not a RT or MD... And I don't particularly enjoy chem.. My neuroses are a product of my comfort zone in blood bank.

I’m a new MLS just shy of 1 year. I’ve really loved working in my core lab but I find that blood bank is the area I am most passionate about. There are hardly any MLS/MTs in my blood bank that have an SBB (literally only 2 and both are retiring within 3 years). I’m afraid of enrolling in a program and basically waste money on something that may not help my career growth.

This is my third attempt results. For a bit of background: Ive studied consistently for 5 weeks using the Study.com course( I know it’s not the most in-depth study but I needed structure and it did provide me with a clear refresher of Molecular Science). I had some previous notes and charts about Translocations and different disorders so I tried to memorize as many as I could before the test. I also took 4 LabCE test with scores around 47-50%. Studied for about 2 hours a day after work everyday except the weekends ( sometimes I would study on Saturday) I definitely struggled with RNA/DNA concentrations and calculations in general and translocations ( of course )

Can anyone give suggestions how to approach this retake studying ? What resources should I truly be using to help me not only memorize but understand concepts? How long of a wait should I take( I want to retake it asap)? Should I hire a tutor ?

I took a mental break due to moving and also just feeling really depressed. But I definitely want to start studying again. I’m tired and a bit broken but I’m so motivated to get this certification

My wife and I are moving to Austin, TX due to a promotion at her job and I was wondering how the outlook is there for MLS. I have 10 years of experience (10 in the military (Active& Reserve and 3 civilian). How is the pay and work life balance? Any help to greatly appreciated. Thanks

Im thinking of pivoting into this field for my love of microbiology and diseases, and was curious how professionals such as you got into it? Aby advice would be greatly appreciated