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    1. Home

    Pathologists in training

    May 1, 2009
    Mlo Generic Mlo Logo

    MLO, curious to know what the
    answer(s) would be, asked the following question: If you were training a
    pathologist to work in your lab — a young newcomer — what bit of advice
    would you give? Would it involve new technology that would make
    his/her job more efficient? Would it concern new laboratory equipment
    that would make a particular type of testing easier and more accurate?
    Would it be
    a service of some type that would assist the laboratory in its
    work? Would it be some sort of management tool (i.e., using LEAN
    or Six Sigma, or “how to” seminars)? In other words, with all of your
    experience in the lab, what would be your one good “shot” at helping the
    new guy/gal on the block?

    Clinical1
    “I want new pathologists to know the importance and benefits to themselves and their practices of active involvement at the state and national levels. The resources, professional contacts, increased awareness of current and future issues, and opportunities to make a difference are incredible, all leading to increased professional fulfillment and positive impact for pathology.”—Margaret Havens Neal, MD, FCAPKWB Pathology AssociatesTallahassee, FL
    Clinical2
    “One phrase that I have repeated to many residents (and future lab directors) is that 95% of all problems in the lab are 'people-problems,' regardless of the management tools or new technology or computers involved. The chemistry problems are the easy ones to solve.”—Andrew W. Lyon, PhD, FCACB, DABCC

    Clinical Biochemist

    Calgary Laboratory Services and

    Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine

    University of Calgary

    Calgary, AB, Canada
    Clinical3
    “Our group's consensus is that the ability to adapt to and utilize new technology as it becomes available is something we believe is very important. Pathology groups need to stay competitive and efficient to enable them to sustain their volume and to provide the best possible service to their clinical providers and patients. This is essential for all groups of varying sizes and regional locations.” —Richard R. Gomez, MD, FCAP

    St. Francis Health Center

    Topeka, KS
    Clinical4
    “Optimum training for a newcomer today is similar to what it has been in the past — learn skills that bring you to the cutting edge in an area you love. Also, do not specialize on a specific disease or instrument but, rather, on an organ or function. Specific diseases and instruments can vanish overnight — organs and functions do not. Finally, change is the most significant constant.”—Ray Gambino, MD

    Boca Raton, FL
    Clinical5
    “One of the big differences in private practice from academia (i.e., training environment) is personal responsibility for your decisions — hopefully you will avail yourself of the wisdom of a more experienced pathologist. A second is to develop and nurture relationships with the medical staff whose patients you serve. Accurate communication is the foundation of service.”—Douglas E. Eglen, MD

    Department of Pathology

    Howard Regional Health System

    Kokomo, IN
    Clinical6
    “The advice I would give a newcomer is to be respectful to others, may it be other pathologists, lab staff, clinical colleagues, or patients; to be modest and question one's own diagnosis; and to be a team worker. These are, in my opinion, preconditions for being a good pathologist in times when things have become very complex in medicine and, especially, pathology. Knowledge and technical procedures are important but can be learned on an ongoing basis. The right attitude toward the responsibilities of the profession are more crucial.”—Andrea Bruecks, MD

    Section Head, Dermatopathology

    Calgary Laboratory Services

    Calgary AB, Canada
    Meet CAP's new executive VP
    Clinical7

    Charles Roussel

    Charles Roussel stepped into the position of
    executive vice president of The College of American Pathologists
    (CAP) on April 21, 2009. He is responsible for the daily operations
    of the College and for reporting to the Board of Governors for the
    medical society serving more than 17,000 physician members and the
    laboratory community throughout the world. The CAP is the world's
    largest association comprised exclusively of pathologists and is
    widely considered the leader in laboratory quality assurance. The
    College is an advocate for high-quality and cost-effective medical
    care.

    Roussel, 46, earned a BS from Waltham, MA's
    Bentley College and an MBA from the University of Chicago Graduate
    School of Business. He has served on the Board of Trustees of The
    Children's Aid Society of New York and Single Stop USA, and on the
    Advisory Board of the Mount Sinai Adolescent Health Center in East
    Harlem, NY.

    Most recently, in his capacity as a director
    at The Atlantic Philanthropies, Roussel directed a $300 million
    global philanthropic investment portfolio that benefited
    disadvantaged children. He worked to bring healthcare back into
    schools and advocated for greater funding for preventive medical and
    mental health services.

    Prior to that, as a managing partner at
    global consultancy Accenture, Roussel served as an executive-level
    advisor to pharmaceutical and high-technology companies; led the
    firm's research on personal and home health technology; and founded
    and led Accenture's mergers, acquisitions and alliances specialty
    group. He has written and spoken extensively on achieving growth
    through alliances.

    “The CAP is a terrific organization,” Roussel
    remarks, “well run and well led with a proud history. It has an
    ambitious vision to transform the role of the pathologist, which I
    find compelling and achievable: to become an integral part of the
    patient-care team, from risk assessment, through diagnosis and
    treatment, to monitoring. Pathologists grasp the fundamentals of
    disease. In partnership with others in healthcare, they can help
    patients better understand their diagnoses, prognoses, and options
    for therapy.”

    He adds, “In the rapidly advancing era of
    personalized medicine, and against a backdrop of ever-increasing
    healthcare costs, the College will have to leverage all of its
    considerable assets — membership talent, intellectual and
    technological leadership, market presence, advocacy skills and
    reputation — to bring about this vision. It is the opportunity of a
    lifetime to help lead this effort, and I feel privileged to be part
    of something that could help transform healthcare in America.”