What role will pathologists play in the healthcare systems of the future, and what skills will those pathologists need? Andrew Fletcher, a pathologist with ARUP Laboratories, describes his own varied career, including time spent as a physician assistant, medical student, surgery intern, pathologist, and health system administrator. Along the way he addresses cultural divides, inter-professional communication, and that the unique contributions that laboratories and pathologists can bring to value-based healthcare.

Part I: Early career influences. In this segment, Dr. Carl Kjeldsberg, professor emeritus of pathology at the University of Utah, describes his early influences and preparation for academic entrepreneurship. He also discusses the challenges that he and his colleagues faced in order to establish ARUP Laboratories in the early 1980s.

Part II: The CEO years. In this segment, Dr. Carl Kjeldsberg, professor emeritus of pathology at the University of Utah, discusses his tenure as both CEO of ARUP Laboratories and department chair of Pathology at the University of Utah. He describes how his people-first leadership philosophy was critical to growing the company.

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.