ADVANCE Outlook: Lab Professionals

Mammography and the Right to Choose

2009-11-20T20:53:00Z

(Editor's note: This is a guest blog written by Valerie M. Chapman, RN, MSN, a pediatric nurse for 25 years. She is a 3-year breast cancer survivor and lives in Medford, NJ, with her husband and two children.) I am a wife, a mother of two awesome kids, a daughter, a sister, and a nurse. I am also a survivor. At the age of 43 a routine screening mammogram picked up an abnormality in my left breast that turned out to be invasive lobular carcinoma. I had no family history or major risk factors, but...(read more)

AMP Starts on Positive Note

2009-11-20T16:14:00Z

KISSIMMEE, FL -- Christmas decorations next to palm trees are a fun treat for your Philadelphia-based reporter at the Gaylord Palms Convention Center in Kissimmee, FL, where opening remarks for the 15th Annual Meeting of the Association for Molecular Pathology just wrapped up. Tim O'Leary, MD, PhD, chair of the Program Committee, welcomed attendees to the meeting before AMP President Jan Nowak, MD, PhD, awarded the AMP Award for Excellence in Molecular Diagnostics to Kay Davies, PhD, for her work...(read more)

ACOG Announces New Pap Guidelines

2009-11-20T14:15:00Z

In a week where the medical community is up in arms about the new mammogram guidelines, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) announced women should get their first Pap test at age 21, regardless if they are sexually active before then. The ACOG said unnecessary treatment for a rare cancer can happen when earlier screening occurs. According to this article , rates of cervical cancer have declined by 50 percent since the 1970s. Healthcare providers believe the rate of this...(read more)

Eggcellent!

2009-11-19T14:26:00Z

Back in September, I traveled home to the Lehigh Valley (Allentown and Bethlehem, PA, area) for a get-together with my girlfriends from high school. I made a cake for the occasion (one I was pretty proud of). We were cutting the cake when my friend Tanya asked if it had egg in it. It did. She was planning on giving a piece to her 1-year-old son Gavin, but she told me she just found out Gavin had egg allergies. A few weeks later I was immersing myself in all of the H1N1 vaccine information. When I...(read more)

10 Job Search Tips

2009-11-18T17:08:00Z

There's been so much material available lately on how to search for a job, especially because of job losses during the recession. We've all read articles about it, and a lot of the advice is repetitive after a while. In her book 366 Tips for a Successful Job Search , Cynthia Wright gives the reader a bunch of new tips I'd never heard of before. Here are 10 that struck me. Do you have any helpful ones to add to the list? Share them with us! Those most at risk for job stress or burnout may be service...(read more)

How to Manage Up

2009-11-16T18:43:00Z

To stay mobile in your career, you need to learn how to "manage up." You should learn how to keep a thumb on your boss -- figuratively speaking, of course -- so you can stay ahead in your job and get what you want out of your manager. In their book Working With You Is Killing Me , Katherine Crowley and Kathi Elster offer the following tips on how to "manage up": The Five Pivotal Practices of Managing Up Train your boss to meet with you regularly. Come to every meeting with a detailed agenda. Keep...(read more)

Signs of the Times

2009-11-13T18:46:00Z

Acknowledging healthcare reform has been controversial would definitely be an understatement. Almost everywhere I've traveled lately I've heard highly emotional and passionate positions for both sides of the debate. This past weekend, a large group of supporters stood on a corner holding handmade signs with messages like, "Healthcare for All," and "Everyone Deserves to be Healthy."Just down the street in front of my local hospital were additional signs that said, "Nurses Against Healthcare Reform."...(read more)

Woman Fatally Shot at Lab

2009-11-11T16:58:00Z

ADVANCE is sad to report that Teresa Marie Beiser, 36, of Gladstone, OR, was fatally shot at her workplace, Legacy MetroLab in Tualatin, OR, yesterday. Beiser was reportedly shot by her estranged husband, Robert James Beiser, 39, who later died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Two of Beiser's coworkers, a 20-year-old woman and a 63-year-old man, were also injured. Beiser fired shots inside and outside of the lab, a drug and alcohol testing facility. For more information, click here ....(read more)

FDA Approves Anti-HIV Test

2009-11-11T16:17:00Z

The FDA has approved Ortho Clinical Diagnostics' diagnostic assay for detecting antibodies to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) types 1+2 (Anti-HIV 1+2) for use on the VITROS 5600 Integrated and VITROS 3600 immunodiagnostic systems. According to Ortho Clinical Diagnostics, this is the first HIV diagnostic assay approved for an integrated system in the United States, allowing laboratory professionals to run HIV and other routine tests on a single testing platform, eliminating the need for expensive...(read more)

Joint Commission Announces Appointment

2009-11-10T17:42:00Z

The Joint Commission has announced the appointment of Jennifer F. Rhamy, MBA, MA, MT(ASCP), SBB, HP as executive director of the Laboratory Accreditation Program. Rhamy, a veteran healthcare professional with experience in both hospitals and blood centers, has extensive knowledge of the inner workings of hospital-based and freestanding clinical laboratories. Most recently, she worked as a blood center consultant and served as vice president of laboratory services for the Indiana Blood Center in Indianapolis....(read more)

Serology Partnership

2009-11-04T19:49:00Z

Biotest Diagnostics awarded agreements with Premier healthcare alliance for its advanced serology solutions Biotest Diagnostics Corp. recently announced a multi-year agreement with Premier Purchasing Partners, L.P., the group purchasing unit of Premier Inc., for its advanced serology solutions, including traditional blood bank reagents, and the TANGO optimo automated blood bank system. The agreement offers Premier members access to specialized pricing on Biotest's full line of traditional and automated...(read more)

3M Release Rapid Detection Test

2009-10-27T16:52:00Z

3M, St. Paul, MN announced today the introduction of the 3M Rapid Detection RSV Test. R espiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) infects the lungs and breathing passages and is a common cause of bronchitis and pneumonia in children under 1 year. The Rapid Detection RSV Test is designed to detect the presence of RSV F-protein antigens in nasopharyngeal swab, nasopharyngeal aspirate or nasal wash/aspirate specimens. The test can detect the presence of RSV in 15 minutes or less using the 3M Rapid Detection...(read more)

Company Releases XMRV Assay

2009-10-26T16:24:00Z

Cooperative Diagnostics LLC, Greenwood, SC, recently announced the availability of a new diagnostic assay for Xenotropic Murine Leukemia-Related Virus (XMRV) to assist physicians in the diagnosis of chronic fatigue syndrome and other disorders potentially caused by the virus. Testing services will also be made available to the general public, according to a company press release. The Simplex XMRV test identifies patients infected with XMRV. XMRV has been recently identified in 95 percent of chronic...(read more)

Syphilis Diagnosis

2009-10-23T15:43:00Z

A recent Science Daily article discussed a study that found blood tests for syphilis diagnosis produce false negatives 20-30 percent of the time. The study also found most health professionals don't have access to more reliable tests methods using fluorescent antibody testing or darkfield microscopy. A CDC professional noted a need for a point-of-care syphilis test. What is syphilis testing like in your lab? Do you have access to these testing methods?...(read more)

H1N1 Diagnosis

2009-10-20T15:45:00Z

About a month ago, I was visiting with my sister. During our conversation, she brought up that her boyfriend had swine flu. I was concerned for him (and, additionally, for her) but also intrigued because he was the first person I knew who had H1N1. Working for a healthcare magazine, I've read a lot about H1N1 and I bombarded Emily with questions. Turns out, her boyfriend went to the doctor but didn't actually get tested for H1N1. Matt's doctor just told him because he had the symptoms, he probably...(read more)