[Histonet] RE:Switching from hospital histo to Research

[Linda Jenkins]

Hi, Carol!
	You  stated:

  " I'm contemplating making a switch from a routine hospital 
histology department to supervising a pharmaceutical research 
histology dept. working with mostly rodent tissue.  Any opinions, 
suggestions, or resources anyone would like to contribute would be 
greatly appreciated.  It seems like a much less stress level than a 
hospital is at times,..... so what am I missing or not thinking about 
as far as the "problems" in this type of histology?"

	Well, I made the switch 18 years ago and the thoughts of going back 
to clinical have never entered my mind.  What's not to like?  Better 
pay, better benefits, MUCH less stress,  no more working holidays or 
weekends unless I choose to do so.  Being able to attend NSH 
conventions and regional and state meetings all expenses paid is 
another perk!  I think the primary ingredient to a successful 
transfer is that you must be self motivated and capable of 
independent work.  In clinical your days are fairly well defined 
(e.g. embed, section, stain, etc.).  In research, you just never know 
what each day will bring.  If you like orderly, routine days then you 
might want to stay in clinical.  I brought human protocols to my 
research lab and they all had to be severely modified.  Rodent tissue 
is so lean you must modify processing protocols or you will end up 
with (as Gayle Callis says) "crispy critters".  You will be asked to 
perform stains you have only read about and they will probably need 
to be modified on top of that. The only thing I really miss is being 
able to consult with a pathologist and histology colleagues when I 
encounter problems. Part of that problem was solved by joining NSH's 
VIR & Hard Tissue committees where I have bunches of "bonehead 
buddies" doing the stuff I am.  I still haven't found a research 
pathologist - much to my chagrin.
	There is much to enjoy about each path so, even if you find you 
don't like research, you can always return to clinical.
	Good Luck,
	Linda