Medical laboratory scientist motivation to pursue graduate education.

BACKGROUND: Medical laboratory staffing shortages have persisted, with challenges in maintaining adequate medical laboratory professionals. The career trajectory for medical laboratory scientists beyond entry level is ambiguous, but advancement opportunities are enhanced with specialist certifications and advanced degrees. OBJECTIVE: This study explored the motivation and preferences of medical laboratory scientists in pursuing graduate medical laboratory science education based on the importance of professional development, career advancement, recognition, and employment benefits. METHODS: A quantitative, cross-sectional, and descriptive correlational study surveyed American Society for Clinical Pathology Board of Certification-credentialed medical laboratory scientists using an online questionnaire. RESULTS: The overall response rate was 2.5%, and 1247 complete surveys were analyzed. Educational preferences varied by respondent age and amount of laboratory experience. Professional development, career advancement, recognition, and employment benefits were all important motivators for seeking graduate degrees, but those who were younger and had less experience indicated they were more important. CONCLUSION: This study suggests several areas of improvement for educational programs, health care organizations, and professional organizations to support the motivation of medical laboratory scientists to pursue graduate education.

A Department-Sponsored, Hospital-Based Pathology Education Symposium Is a Cost-Effective Method to Provide Laboratory Staff With Highly Rated Continuing Education Experiences.

CONTEXT.­: Continuing education improves the quality of medical care and is a required part of most health care professions. Although a variety of educational modules are available online or at external conferences, completion of these activities can be expensive and time-consuming. In addition, externally produced modules may have limited applicability to a local practice. OBJECTIVE.­: To assess the ability of an economically efficient, locally produced, department-wide pathology educational seminar to efficiently meet education requirements for a large number of employees in a large health system. DESIGN.­: A multiday continuing education symposium was produced annually from 2013 through 2019 at no cost to participants. Metrics related to attendance, number of educational sessions available for registration, and participant satisfaction were tabulated, trended, and compared with similar metrics tabulated from an external continuing education conference that was offered from 2011 through 2012. RESULTS.­: The production of an internal, hospital-based educational symposium increased employee attendance (mean of 635 attendees per year versus 247 at the external program; P < .001) while reducing mean annual cost per attendee ($51 versus $140, P < .001). The number of sessions produced for the internal symposium was 39 per year on average, compared with 12 per year at the external program. Technical staff, residents, fellows, and faculty all contributed to internal educational programming, helping to build a team culture in the department. Overall employee satisfaction was 96.2%. CONCLUSIONS.­: An internal educational pathology symposium led to cost-efficient distribution of continuing education credits to a large number of technical staff, with a high degree of reported employee satisfaction.

Sulfhydryl treatment of serum or plasma for the reduction of IgM antibodies.

CONCLUSIONS: Dithiothreitol (DTT) and 2-mercaptoethanol (2-ME) are sulfhydryl compounds that can be used to treat serum or plasma to denature IgM antibody reactivity. By using sulfhydryl agents, IgG and IgM antibodies can be separated, the relative amount of IgM and IgG antibodies can be determined, and the risk of hemolytic disease of the fetus and newborn can be assessed.