Laboratory Technologist, Rood and Riddle Equine Veterinary Hospital Laboratory

Medical Laboratory Science '13

What is your current title? 

Laboratory Technologist at Rood and Riddle Equine Veterinary Hospital Laboratory

What are your primary responsibilities? 

My primary responsibilities are to run laboratory tests on different types of specimens from Horses, and occasionally small animals. That includes tests in Hematology, Chemistry, Micro, and even a little bit of Blood Bank. I deal directly with the veterinarians and their interns to give results in the timeliest manner possible just like in a “human hospital.”

Why did you choose the College of Health Sciences for your studies? Why did you choose the veterinary hospital for employment?

I chose UK’s College of Health Sciences for my studies because I love UK and didn’t attend it for my first undergraduate degree. I had heard about the Medical Laboratory Science Program, and since I already worked in a lab I thought it was something that I would be good at and decided to pursue it. I was also lucky to get in in the first class of the new directorship and curriculum. I chose my place of employment for a new different experience in the Lab profession.  Working in a veterinary hospital lab is very similar work but of course with differences with some types of tests and reference ranges as well. The good thing is with my training from UK being as good as it was I was able to translate my human lab knowledge directly into the veterinary world almost seamlessly. 

Do you have any concerns about things in your current field? If so, what are they? 

The only concerns I have for my field is that fact that the profession is not as well-known as other healthcare professions. I also think people that do know about the profession only think that the degree can be used to work in a hospital lab and if people knew all the different things that can be done with this degree the profession, I believe, would be much more well-known and probably grow substantially.

What do you hope to accomplish in your new position?

I hope with my new position I am able to learn about how different labs run not only with personnel but also with equipment and how labs flow. I want to use all the information and knowledge that I gain along the way to make sure labs, in all fields, run as smoothly and effectively as possible in order to cement this profession as one future generations grow up wanting to be in.

Do you have any advice for students interested in your field? 

My advice for students interested in the field is to talk to current or past students personally about what it all entails. Also I would say while researching the field also looks into all the different aspects of the field such as bench work, QC/QA, management, equipment building/maintenance, reagent companies, and even using it as a stepping stone to other health care professions like Med, Dental, or even PA schools  It’s an ever changing health care world and this profession is right at the heart of everything health care.