[Histonet] 4 cents worth

[Rittman, Barry R]

I must in general agree with Pam and others who have stressed the need
for formal recognition of skills such as with a recognized program.

I do not think that anyone has been insulted on Histonet with regard to
their on the job training. I also had a lot of on the job training. What
those of y'all who may be indignant when the quality of OJT is
questioned have to realize is that it is not possible to equate OTJ in
different workplaces.  

You may have had superb training or may have been in a job where the
training was poor or mediocre at best. You may have been working your
buts off or had time to improve your skills and experiment with new
procedures. It is difficult to know what your specific situation is
unless you have a piece of paper where you may be compared to other
individuals. Having passed the ASCP exam does not necessarily mean that
you are better trained than somewhat who has worked in a great lab and
only received OJT.  It does mean that you can be compared to others who
have passed the  ASCP exam, it is a basic level. 

Having a degree especially, outside the field may indicate that you have
reached a certain level of academia, but also does not guarantee that
you have "street smarts" or will be able to pick up techniques and
concepts better than an individual who has not received such training.
You only have to ask someone who has been placed in charge of helping
graduate students with their histology projects to know how true this
is.

The ASCP exam, while it is not perfect is a first step in ensuring that
individuals have the basics. 

If we are going to work on anything lets work on improving the ASCP
examination. 

I personally have a lot of problems with the practical portion where
automated machines are allowed to be used to prepare slides.

Barry