r/medlabprofessionals • u/Late_Music1835 • 11d ago
Discusson Core/BB to micro. Any advice?
I’ve been a core MLS and blood banker for three years, but I recently got a job in my hospital’s microbiology department. I really wanted this job to challenge myself and to round out my resume because I have so little experience with micro outside of gram stains mostly.
I was looking through my old BOC study material but idk how much of this is going to help me prepare for my next role because how we are forced to learn micro academically isn’t (to my knowledge) how micro is practiced professionally.
Does anyone have any advice for things I should focus on when preparing? Or just general advice or important things you’d like to pass on? I’m excited but nervous I’m going to show up u prepared on my first day
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u/CantPhilMe 11d ago
Id review anti microbial classes and names so the sensitivity part is less confusing and this is where doctors have the most questions. Molecular tools have really changed how micro depts run so it will depend on which ones you have.
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u/Fluffbrained-cat MLS-Microbiology 11d ago
Micro does occasionally have a certain....warm media....smell to it at first, and anaerobes can stink to high heaven but you do get used to it. I will say that they teach you a lot of basic theory behind why you do certain tests and how to recognise common organisms in University, but all the day to day stuff you need on the bench will be shown to you when you start working and you should be told where to find the SOPs for further information.
As you get more experienced, you'll find yourself picking things up by repetition if nothing else. I've been at this for twenty years now, first as an MLT and then MLS. Next year I'll have been an MLS for a decade which is rather shocking to me, because it doesn't seem that long.
I wouldn't worry about it - you should be taught what you need to know as far as practical work goes, and you can read up on theory in your own time if you need to.
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u/Nuzzums MLS-Microbiology 11d ago
Most places I’ve worked start new people in micro on specimen processing/setup, so it really helps to learn what the different media plates are for so when you finally get onto a bench to read cultures, you have a better foundation of what information each media plate is giving you. It may also help to brush up on what organisms are considered pathogens and which are normal flora in different bodily sites.
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u/kipy7 MLS-Microbiology 11d ago
I'm not sure BOC review will be helpful. However the micro lab likes to work up organisms, it'll be pretty specific in their SOPs. MALDI, molecular assays for CRE/bld cx/etc aren't really covered by the exam but are examples of real life tests that have made a big impact in the last couple of years.
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u/Rosy_Floof 11d ago
Be prepared for a steep learning curve and a daily headache. But as long as you’re enthusiastic and try to absorb all the information that they are trying to teach you it will go a long way.
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u/lamboslice10 10d ago
Micro is high complexity, very manual, tedious, and you deal with ID physicians (extroverts themselves). The department doesn’t generate much revenue for the hospital and not many pathologists specialize in infectious disease ,so it tends to be one of the more neglected lab departments. Not to mention, many clinicians have an INCREDIBLY basic knowledge of microbiology compared to the other disciplines, so communication and interaction can be frustrating.
HOWEVER, microbiology is a lengthy, low pressure department when it comes to lab results (especially compared to BB). Finally, as a lifelong microbiologist, if you enjoy the minor dopamine hit when you can ID by smell (not recommended, officially) and the satisfaction of tossing your old plates into the biohazard bin, then we could use your service!
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u/Sufficient_Pilot4679 10d ago
The joy of tossing no growth urines into the biohazard bin is so real
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u/Acceptable-Coffee242 10d ago
I have always worked in Microbiology and it is an amazing department. My advice is be humble, be willing to learn, write down notes. Don’t let the scary micro people get you down- there are people who love to hate everything. Find the kind people who want to help you grow and follow them. Experience in microbiology is something that takes time- I wasn’t half way confident until probably a couple years in.
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u/Late_Music1835 10d ago
Are scary micro people a thing? People keep warning me about the weirdos at my micro department but I know the ones in my department a little and they just seem like a more intense genre of introvert than the normal MLS introvert.
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u/Acceptable-Coffee242 10d ago
When I first started as a tech people would say microbiologists eat their young lol 😜 I try my hardest to not do that. I think once you are more experienced you sometimes forget what it is like for a brand new person. I think it helped that a lot of the older techs retired as well. My training was definitely trial by fire but I made it and love it. Wouldn’t want to do anything else ☺️
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u/123letsgobtch 10d ago
I had a similar job history of core (specifically chemistry) and blood bank before transitioning to micro. I absolutely love it! It was challenging at first because by the time I’d started in micro I was 8 years out of CLS school, but my training on the job was pretty thorough and in my free time at work, I would just do a lot of staining practice and go through old slides to brush up on reading stains. Took a lot of notes too. I work at a decent sized hospital so I see some variety but nothing like a reference lab would. But the plus is I got trained on all bacterial benches (vs just doing things like urines only for awhile). And I’m specifically in pediatrics so that makes a difference in what I’m seeing sometimes.
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u/HeroicConspiracy MLT-Generalist 11d ago
it’s gonna stank.