[Histonet] Salary Scales

[Rene J Buesa]

My main issue is with the samples: in histology they are usually UNIQUE, small, solid and if lost or damaged they cannot be replaced at all. That fact makes the decisions taken regarding that sample more transcendental.
  Unless you are dealing with a blood sample taken during a physiological or medical crisis, any blood sample can be redrawn if damaged or lost, and that makes the samples sometimes a non issue within the ML.
  I am not referring to the technical part of reading a blood differential count or releasing a result.
  Blood counts now are done automatically and what the MT has to do is to check on flagged cells, like a cytotech reading the least "normal" cells in a PAP smear "read" by an automaton.
  A MT has to make sure that the controls in a run are within the established limits, and if that is the case, then it is normal to release the results that, if out of the limits, come also flagged by the instrument.
  What I am referring to also is that when confronted with a foreseeable workload increment the manager in the medical lab starts looking for a more efficient and productive analytical instrument, but confronted with an increment in the number of surgical cases, the manager in the histology lab can only hope to be able to hire more qualified personnel.
  I don' say that there are no decisions to make by the MT, what I am trying to point out is that those decisions, because of the special characteristics of the samples, have more permanent consequences in histology.
  I am also saying that those differences are not reflected in the salaries, always higher for the MT even when the work for the MT is automated in about 80% of the tests, and it does not reach 30% for the histology lab.
  René J. 

Jennifer MacDonald <JMacDonald <@t> mtsac.edu> wrote:
  
While I agree with Renee that histotechs have to make many decisions, I don't necessarily agree that they make more decisions that other areas in the lab.  I worked in the clinical lab for many years and had to make many decisions regarding the adequacy of a specimen and interpret the QC before that result could be released.  Manual differentials require that the tech know the morphology of all cell types.  Cross matching blood for transfusions requires interpretation before that blood can be released for transfusion to the patient.  An error in cross-matching can kill the patient.  I can tell you that my stress level as a Medical Technologist was much higher than my stress level as Histotechnician.  There are many more examples where the knowledge and judgement of the tech will determine the outcome of patient result reporting and treatment.  The pathologist does not make the final decision for the Med Tech before they release results to the clinician.  We were also
 responsible for notifying the clinician when the patient results were critical. 
Jennifer 




        Rene J Buesa <rjbuesa <@t> yahoo.com> 
Sent by: histonet-bounces <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu   05/15/2008 09:22 AM 
            To
  "Dawson, Glen" <GDawson <@t> dynacaremilwaukee.com>, histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu       cc
        Subject
  RE: [Histonet] Salary Scales
          



Glen:
 And it will keep that way until histotechs star demanding what is deserved!
  
 Have you realized that histotechs are the only specialists in the medical lab that have to make decisions all along the process?
 When to reject a too thick slice of tissue to assure proper processing?
 What part to embed to cut?
 Up to where trim the block discarding parts of the specimen FOR EVER?!
 Which section to take or which to discard FOR EVER?!
 When to stop differentiation in a special stain?
  
 There is no other area of the ML that has to take so many decisions, and they are better paid. And will be until the HTs decide to take action and demand what is deserved.
 Just my opinion (as usual!).
 René J.
 

"Dawson, Glen" <GDawson <@t> dynacaremilwaukee.com> wrote:
 




      
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