Anyone here currently work, or previously worked for Natera?
I got a job offer from them which is in the six figure range but their employer reviews on indeed are kinda low. Just curious if anyone had any first hand knowledge of what it like working for them.
*EDIT*
To clarify, the position is remote. So essentially it’s working as a liaison between outside labs who work with Natera.

Thought I’d take the discussion I had with three different doctors (hem/onc, PCP, immunology) about basophil percentage on CBC. Two said that automated analyzers underestimate percentage. Hem/onc says they overestimate. Would welcome actual med lab professionals intake. This is for education only.

Am i the only one that gets nauseous at the scent and sight of blood.
I can handle my own, but a person with a serious cut and the 🩸 spilling out is what i can’t handle.

I don’t think it’s fear. I’m not afraid of needles and i have no problem doing blood tests.

I am considering going back to school to pursue a masters degree. I have been a bench tech for 2.5 years and have a BSBA. Looking at masters options, I don’t care to do MBA or MSMLS. I have zero desire to do any type of leadership role. I’ve been looking at MPH degrees but I’m seeing a lot of negative feedback on this sub and others about choosing that track (only finding wildly outdated posts though).

Anyone gone back to school to do something non-leadership role related that can give some insight? I really just love school and I love learning and I also want to give myself more options in a job field that has limited ones.

:)

siendo técnica de laboratorio de analisis clinicos me interesa mucho trabajar en laboratorios de control de calidad de alimentos y aguas. vale la pena hacer cursos o no me van a servir? me recomendaron analista de microbiologia o analista de control de calidad pero no se si estoy bien orientada

It's been a while, but still love this med lab hymn.

Does anybody work at BioLife? What is your day to day like? Pay? So you like it? I’m an MLT considering applying for a Lab Technician job there.

Hi everyone,

I already completed a Bachelor degree in science, but I’ve been struggling to find a job in the field. Because of that, I’m now considering doing a Diploma to gain more practical skills and improve my employability.

For people who have gone through a similar pathway:

• Did doing a Diploma help you find a job more easily?
• Is it better for getting practical industry skills and experience?
• Or would employers still mainly care about work experience rather than another qualification?

I’d really appreciate any honest advice or experiences. Thanks!

Hi, So I am starting my pre-reqs this summer to start my pathway to be a Medical Lab Technician! For now, during the first year I will just be doing online classes like Medical terminology, English comp, Statistics etc , basically all the easy stuff that they will let be do online. So all in it will unfortunately take me three years to graduate as i can’t start in person classes until next year as i work full time as a phlebotomist and JUST got a new job and don’t have the funds/time to “officially” start my MLT program full time in person.

Anyways, I was wondering what all should i except with the program? Any tips? This is my first time going to college. I feel there is so much I don’t know.

Hi yall! What’re we doing at work to keep back pain at a minimum? Maybe I’m alone in this, but I just started my first ever position in a lab as a lab assistant and my back has been killing me since starting. I don’t think my posture is HORRIBLE so this is really throwing me lmao. I want to blame the stupid stools at the hoods. They need backs to them aren’t there little chairs we can use??!!! One person told me my muscles just have to get used to standing a lot but if that’s the case wouldn’t my back feel sore not achy? Anyway, any and all tips appreciated!!

I'm a Pathology resident and I'm thinking about buying my own microscope. Would you recommend this brand?

Which is better, Optika or Labomed?

Is the Skopio any good? How does it compare to CellaVision?

I graduated with a BS in Cell & Molecular Bio in 2023 and haven't had luck getting into research, so I'm trying to pivot to working as a Molecular Scientist or Technician and was wondering what's the best course of action I should take. I keep looking online but it's honestly hard to figure out what's necessary and what's not. I'm in Florida also (sadly).

A job is a job, especially when it’s temporary. But for the ones who were more specific, what side jobs did you work? Did any of them ‘help’ you when you finally graduated?

I got offered two positions and each has its pros and cons. I’ve been working 6 years (4yrs in micro and 2 yrs as a generalist). I’ve recently been a bit burnt out from the lab, and been struggling finding a good work life balance at my current job working off hours.

1st offer : Part time 20 hrs/week 9am-7:30pm. Small urgent care/out pt lab with 100-150 samples a day. Roughly 1 critical a week. They have a sysmex, alinity chem in the works and a clinitek for UA. Able to pick up 4-5 days extra a month for more hours. Promised to be given FT status end of 2027 Dec due to retirement of another worker.

2nd offer : Full time 40 hrs/week 4pm-12am. Level one trauma hospital in Micro. Get to experience using the Kiestra automated instrument while working up cultures. More knowledge to gain from. 18k sign on bonus (2 year commitment). Alot of new techs in this shift which makes me think there may be a high turnover? I know three techs just moved to first shift, so I’m not sure how long it would be to get onto first shift.

I forgot to mention, I don’t pay rent/utilities. Just car loan and student loans (which isn’t too much)

How true is this salary for a pathologist?

Every so often, I will do a blood smear, and find these "encapsulated" platelets. I thought giant platelets were the immature baby platelets? And then those break apart further.

What are these encapsulated looking ones? Do I count them?

This dog had slightly low platelets on CBC. No clumping, and no clumping in feathered edge, but had a few of these encapsulated looking ones and only the rare giant. Pretty normal otherwise.

Hello all,

I've tried to see if anything similar was asked on the sub, but I haven't found it - if I'm wrong then I'd appreciate getting pointed in the right direction. I've done my research on qualifications but am deeply confused on the reality of the subject.

I'm a lab technician who studied in Spain (Técnico Superior de Laboratorio Clínico y Biomédico), which is an NFQ 5. I got myself a spot on the Erasmus+ programme, allowing me to do a post-grad internship abroad. I'm moving to Ireland this summer, so I was hoping to do the internship there. The intermediary company for my college says they won't look in Ireland because the requirements are too strict.

My understanding is that there is a lab tech qualification in Ireland which is also NFQ 5, which is a one year course (mine is two years). My level of education is closer to the Medical Scientist uni course in Ireland, as I had to study everything from lab techniques to microbiology and immunology, but obviously it won't get convalidated as that (which is totally understandable, I wanna do the uni course one day anyway). So what is stopping me from doing an internship in Ireland under the NFQ 5 qualification?

No one in my college has gone on Erasmus to Ireland, let alone in the healthcare field. If anyone here is able to clear this up for me, I'd appreciate it because I'm lost with no one to guide me through any of this.

Appreciate the help in advance.

Hey all, hoping to get some real-world takes from folks who've actually used the shorter 40mm capillary tubes on a StatSpin microhematocrit centrifuge. We're kicking around the idea of switching from the standard 70-75mm and I'd rather hear it from people running them daily than from a vendor spec sheet.

A few things I'm curious about:

Are you getting a clean packed cell column at the normal 2 minute spin, or did you have to mess with the time? Any plasma trapping weirdness or fuzzy interface on the shorter column?

Does the shorter column hurt precision when reading? Or is it kind of a wash because there's less tube to fight with on the reader card? Curious if tech-to-tech variability got better or worse.

Easier or harder to teach? Wondering about fill consistency, seal quality, breakage, all the usual newbie pitfalls. Did you see fewer redraws, more, or about the same?

Worth it overall? Did you stick with 40mm or end up rolling back to 75mm? For context, we're a Core Lab and mostly use spun hct for QC checks and the occasional manual on a flagged sample, so not crazy volume. Mixed experience staff, some seasoned and some newer.

Appreciate any input, even short "we tried it and hated it" replies are useful.