Content provided in partnership with

Health Care Industry

Med tech of all trades; master of many

Medical Laboratory Observer, June, 2005 by Carren Bersch

Change is the key word at Sarasota Memorial Hospital & Healthcare System's (SMH's) laboratories. The sentiment is reflected in a colorful "Who Moved My Cheese?" poster on Anne Beall's door. Beall (BS, MT), manager of SMH's Microbiology and Specialty Services, strongly believes in the premises written there:

* Change Happens

* Monitor Change

* Anticipate Change

* Change

* Adapt to Change Quickly

* Enjoy Change, and

* Be Ready to Quickly Change and Enjoy It. Again.

Most Popular Articles in Health: Fuel your workout: exercisers who eat before they work out have more energy ...; Soothe a dry, itchy scalp: 5 easy expert solutions; Cocktails and calories: Beer, wine and liquor calories can really add up. ...; The sour truth about apple cider vinegar - evaluation of therapeutic use; The, six best supplements you've never heard of: these secret weapons can ...; More »

When Beall arrived at SMH two years ago, there was no cross-training in her lab. "I think I suggested that during my interview!" she laughs. Beall immediately implemented the process of change. She says that the trend to specialize in one of the department's areas--bacteriology, fungus, mycobacteria, virology, parasitology, immunology, flow cytometry, serology, and molecular biology--may have surfaced at SMH during the mid-1990s.

Then, outside consultants had encouraged the hospital's administrators to operate the labs with fewer FTEs in order to save money. Thus, surmises Beall, "Protecting jobs became more important than operating efficiently." By specializing, everyone supposedly became indispensable. She also notes that a quasi-traditional but well-entrenched belief likely existed among administrators, supervisors, and managers: No one could be proficient in one area if he were trained in all areas. In truth, says Beall, "if there is a crisis, you are limited in responding if cross-training is nonexistent."

Soon after Beall settled into her new position at the hospital, she and long-time SMH employee Kathy Miller, BS, MT(ASCP)--manager of SMH's Laboratory Technical Services--joined forces to combat ongoing medical laboratory workforce challenges. They knew they had to rethink and revamp workflow in their respective laboratories, using cross-training as one of their improvement tools.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Change for existing workforce

Miller began her laboratory career "cross-trained"; she worked in the blood bank and in microbiology from the start. "Techs like to be cross-trained because it keeps them engaged in their work," she says. "Work does not become mundane." She has a total of 36 FTEs in the main lab. "We 're-recruit' them when we cross-train them." According to Miller, cross-training brings "analytical, thinking people" into new relationships with co-workers, which requires excellent communications skills.

Cross-training in the SMH core lab, Miller continues, is "by choice. It can be a challenge. We do not just go through the motions of cross-training our personnel. We give them what they need initially, then schedule them on rotations in hematology, urine, coag, chemistry, special chemistry, and some of immunology. Rotations mean their skills always remain useful." It also means that with cross-trained employees, "there is no overtime cost, no financial burden."

In the main lab, Miller's day shift and night shift personnel are trained in all areas of the department, although she admits that the cross-training is not as comprehensive as that of the specialist in a particular area. "Cross-trainees learn about 75% of the primary task," she says. Still, the result is that the main lab is consistently covered for its major workload. Additionally, the night shift is trained in micro functions, such as STAT Gram stains on spinal fluids, rapid strep tests, and setting up (but not reading) bacteriology plates.

Her department, Miller says, takes pride in teamwork. "We know each other well. We are like a family here. We have such little turnover." With workers averaging around 49 years of age and beginning to look to retirement, however, Miller has to evaluate her strategy for future hires. "New graduates are coming. They owe it to themselves to ensure that what they learned in school is aligned in a clinical setting. Getting a good foundation through cross-training is fundamental to their future success."

Any concerns Miller has about finding skilled technologists just entering the field are warranted. With more automation in today's laboratory, she may need fewer but more highly trained technologists, and she will continue to need cross-trained generalists. In these unique circumstances, Miller has approval to hire a full-time employee who is "flexible enough to work any lab, any shift, handle phlebotomy and central processing; someone who is not assigned to any one bench but ready for unexpected episodes--someone who will try it all, a Jack or Jill of all trades." She is optimistic about future medical lab techs: "Young people have a fresh outlook; they are energetic. They have a new perspective."

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

And Miller's future employees will need to be adroit when it comes to computers and instruments in the lab. "In the past, laboratories were influenced by vendor loyalty or an allegiance to a particular company when it came to new equipment. That meant no comparisons were made with other new equipment," she says. "At Sarasota Memorial, we have a comprehensive criteria for selecting new equipment, as well as a group of people who participate in the purchasing-decision process, from the bench to the supervisor, from the manager to director levels. We have an open environment in the core lab, and we need to have everyone competent." The skills incoming technologists will need involve not only operating equipment and troubleshooting malfunctions but also working with information systems personnel.

Health Care Industry

Med tech of all trades; master of many

Medical Laboratory Observer, June, 2005 by Carren Bersch

Find Research Guides for:

Find Featured Titles for: Sports

Most Popular Articles in Health

Most Popular Publications in Health