[Histonet] Histotechs: born or made?

[Gladney, Diane C Ms MACH]

I, too, was a fan of Quincy and now am a fan of CSI. But the episode of
CSI where I saw the pathologist cutting a block on the microtome and
turning the fly wheel backwards sent me screaming at the TV...."Are you
trying to strip every gear in that microtome!!!"  I absolutely cringed
when I saw that.   But the biggest laugh that I got out of the episode
was seeing a pathologist cutting blocks. Not to put down pathologists
but it is very rare to see one cutting blocks in a clinical environment.
The CSI consultants also need to get with the latest technology in
histology and not have someone drying slides over an open flame. If
anyone saw this episode, you know what I mean. Hollywood, you gotta love
them; they hire consultants then refuse to listen to them.  I still am a
huge fan of CSI and the program has sparked an interest in the medical
laboratory field including histology. Hey, we need as much exposure as
possible. Histology is the greatest of laboratory professions. I have no
regrets of  working for more than 30 years in this profession and look
forward to working many more. 

Diane  
     


Diane C. Gladney, HT (ASCP)
Supervisor, Histology/Cytology
Moncrief Army Community Hospital
Dept. of Pathology
4500 Stuart Street
P.O. Box 484
Ft. Jackson, SC  29207 

Email:  diane.gladney <@t> se.amedd.army.mil
Phone:  803-751-2530  FAX:  803-751-7829 


-----Original Message-----
From: histonet-bounces <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
[mailto:histonet-bounces <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu] On Behalf Of Monfils,
Paul
Sent: Wednesday, November 30, 2005 3:17 PM
To: 'histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu'
Subject: RE: [Histonet] Histotechs: born or made?

Yes we have come a long way since one of the pathologists on one of my
first jobs referred to histotechs as "glorified salami slicers". Our
supervisor however was not one to take any baloney, and promptly told
the good doctor that without our salami his diagnoses would be baloney.

The only line I remember from Quincy, after watching it for several
years, is "Sam, get me a PAS on this - STAT!"

But CSI, which I also watch frequently, really is a mix of science and
science fiction. I wish we did have machines that could do everything
their machines do. Some of them are really way out there. Like the
episode where two people had a conversation near a pottery wheel, and
the clay picked up the vibrations of their conversation, which were
subsequently scanned by a laser and turned back into audible voices.
:-)

I even noticed a technical error related to my avocation - malacology.
In one episode a dealer in illegally harvested abalone (a type of
shellfish) is shot.  The medical examiner says "serves him right for
selling an endangered bivalve". As you may remember from your
invertebrate zoology class, abalone are gastropods, not bivalves.


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