LabMind

Transfusion medicine has arguably led other pathology subspecialties in improving patient safety through industrial quality management and standardization methods. However, standardization practices, such as the use of transfusion triggers, are in some respects a one-size-fits-all approach. And as we undoubtedly know, real patients aren't standardized. In this discussion, Ryan Metcalf, section chief for transfusion medicine in the University of Utah Department of Pathology, describes the development of data visualization tools to help surgeons and anesthesiologists optimize their transfusion decisions based on individual patient needs.

Paul Epner’s more than four-decade career started at Abbott Diagnostics and has involved collaboration with the CDC and a tenure as president of the Clinical Laboratory Management Association (CLMA). He now serves as CEO of the Society to Improve Diagnosis in Medicine (SIDM). Throughout his career, Epner has been a powerful advocate for the role of laboratory professionals. In our special Lab Week interview, we discuss why diagnosis is a team sport, how cross-disciplinary collaboration is fundamental to the critical impact of laboratory medicine, and the overall quality of medical care.

When Dr. Nicola Longo, professor of Pediatrics at the University of Utah, encounters a child with an undiagnosed syndrome, he has a unique resource: Dr. Marzia Pasquali, professor of pathology and section chief of Biochemical Genetics at ARUP Laboratories. Their connection extends back to high school in Parma, Italy, and grew through years of medical and scientific training, marriage, and clinical practice. In our discussion, they describe their combined life’s work to solve diagnostic mysteries and develop diagnostic tools to enable long, healthy, and productive lives in children who might otherwise face neurologic decline and early death.

Ron Weiss, MD, MS, MBA, served as president and COO of ARUP Laboratories in the early 2000s. He was one of the principle authors of ARUP's “Five Pillars” statement of ethical principles. He pulls from his experiences growing up with a family business to explain how ARUP's early success required both business acumen and patient-centered values. Weiss also discusses why he's optimistic about the future of U.S. healthcare.
Originally published June 21, 2019

As an infectious disease physician and medical microbiologist, Dr. Kim Hanson has had a busy year. In this interview, she reflects on some of the successes during the COVID-19 era, such as the collaboration among rival regional health systems to provide testing for our communities. She discusses how COVID-19 testing needs are evolving, pointing to the pressing need for a national variant surveillance system in which academic medical center laboratories could play a large role. Finally, she offers some predictions for the coming year. 

Nadine Fydryszewski is program director for the world’s first Doctor of Clinical Laboratory Science (DCLS) program at Rutgers University. Modeled after other health professional degree programs, including those for pharmacy and physical therapy, this doctorate-level role for clinical laboratorians was developed to complement interdisciplinary patient care teams. Brandy Gunsolus, the program’s first graduate, currently practices at Augusta University Medical Center in Georgia. In this conversation, the two explain what it took to get the DCLS program off the ground and why clinicians are so enthusiastic about including DCLSs on their care teams and hospital committees.