[Histonet] tried posting this once already... didn't work.

[Robyn Vazquez]

BRAVO Megan!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I to fell into being a histotech.  ALL started in the military.  I was
trained as a lab tech, but a billet came open for a lab tech in a
histotechs job.  Out of military into guess what? A histo job.  All I
had was On the job training, no schooling, just self taught and a lot of
patient senior techs.  Wahla, 14 years later and still a histotech
without formal schooling for this position.  My docs expect a great deal
from me and I deliver without four years of schooling.  Thanks for
letting me share my views.

Robyn
OHSU


>>> <TheBestTime23 <@t> aol.com> 03/04/05 3:28 PM >>>
OK.  I really wasn't expecting much of a response from my post, and 
was 
really surprised by what I got.  I want to start by apologizing to all 
that I 
have offended.  It surely wasn't my intent.  And while I have  thought
of a lot 
of things to say in response to your many e-mails, I will try  to keep
this 
within reason.  
First:  I like my job.  I feel very fortunate to have gotten into  a
field 
that pays me well, keeps me interested and has a lot of potential for 
growth.  
I take pride in the work that I do and I love learning new things 
every day.  
I have recently gotten the opportunity to train on immunos and  I
couldn't be 
more thrilled.
Second, and probably more to the point:  I was really trying to make a 

comment about the requirements for being a histotech, not a statement
about the  
job itself.  The e-mail I was responding to had mentioned 4 years of 
college as 
a pre-req, and I thought that was an excessive amount.  I  probably
have a 
skewed point of view, having dropped out of college after only  one
semester, 
but I think that there are many bright and talented people that 
haven't gone to 
college that could still do wonderfully as histotechs.  If  you had 4
years 
of college as a requirement and add another 2 to learn the histo 
stuff, you're 
looking at 6 years.  You could become a pathology assistant  in that
amount 
of time and be earning a whole lot more when you were done and  still
be 
working in a similar field.  That was my only real point.  I 
understand that they 
want people to have more education and that's fine.  I  like the way
that the 
ASCP also takes credit hours into consideration and is not  just
looking for a 
degree.  But 4 years, in my opinion, is too much.   WAY too much.  I
would 
hate to think how many very talented histotechs we  would not have now
had the 
requirements been that stiff 20 years ago.
I guess my third point is more of a question.  I know how I got to be 
a 
histotech.  I basically fell into it.  I knew someone who worked in  a
lab and I 
started as a lab aid, heard about on the job training and went from 
there.  I 
know a lot of people who started that way, or as phlebotomists or 
something 
similar.  How many people got started in a similar way?  I  also know
that most 
people get a totally blank look on their face when you tell  them that
you 
work in histology.  I had certainly never heard of it  before.  How
many of you 
had?  I can't see many people looking through  a course list and saying
to 
themselves, "oh, histology, that would be perfect  for me", because
most of them 
wouldn't know what the heck it was.  As far  as I know (and this is
mostly a 
guess) there aren't any 2 year programs at tech  schools or anything
like that. 
 Histology is kind of an anomaly that  way.  Taught in hospitals and
clinics, 
but not schools.  Maybe the on  the job training wasn't such a bad
thing.  At 
least it would get those  remaining empty spots full, until some more 
concrete method of teaching our  craft is set up.  Just another
thought.  One that I 
hope won't get me  into any more trouble  : )
 
My apologies,
 
Megan
Grateful new histotech

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