Clinical Educators' Teaching Approaches and Attributes in Laboratory Medicine.

The quality of clinical experiences for students in health care professions relies heavily on clinical educators. Hence the quest to be informed on qualities that make great clinical educators in medical laboratory professions as well as teaching methods. A 48-question survey was developed, validated, and distributed to laboratory professionals in the American Society for Clinical Pathology database. Four questions pertaining to teaching and evaluation as well as clinical educators' attributes were evaluated in the study. Responses were analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences. Descriptive statistics were performed with the P value set at .05. The results revealed that communication and motivation to teach were most valued among clinical educators and empathy was the least valued attribute. Educators reported on different approaches to teaching and evaluating students. Clinical educators could benefit from training that highlights these attributes and teaching methods for great clinical experiences both for educators and students.

Establishing the Need for Standardized Clinical Educator Training Programs for Medical Laboratory Professionals.

BACKROUND: There is minimal, if any, training for clinical educators in medical laboratory professions. This leads to challenges with teaching, assessment and workload/training balance. Hence, the need for standardized clinical educator training. METHOD: A survey was developed, validated and deployed to medical laboratory professionals. Responses were analyzed using SPSS. Responses from two open-ended questions-is clinical educators' training important and how is this training beneficial?-were analyzed using thematic analysis. RESULTS: Most participants indicated that clinical educator training is important (99.4%). However, 72.4% received no formal training prior to training student. Themes from the importance of training include: Equip clinical educators, body of knowledge, standardize training and quality of training. Themes that emerged from the benefits of clinical educators training involve Training content, logistics, professional behavior and technical skills. CONCLUSION: Clinical educators' training is crucial and valuable. Standardized training on pedagogy and other success strategies are warranted for successful clinical experiences.

The Impact of COVID-19 on the Laboratory Professionals' Clinical Education: a Qualitative Study.

A 48-question survey was developed and disseminated to laboratory professionals. This survey sought the perspective of clinical educators on a variety of topics, including two open-ended questions on the impact COVID-19 had on student clinical rotations and the ensuing policy changes. Of 207 clinical sites that participated in the survey., Some terminated student clinical rotations without offering any other training alternative. Others employed a number of strategies such as shortening the length of clinical rotations, taking fewer students, transitioning to an online learning platform, or delaying training until a future date. Some mandated regular illness checks, symptom checks, and COVID-19 testing when available. Clinical educators expressed concern over the lack of continuity of student clinical training, policy changes related to COVID-19 and student training that were deemed to diminish the quality of the students' clinical education. With terminated, delayed or shortened clinical rotations at many sites, in combination with staff and supply shortages, clinical educators were concerned about the overall quality of clinical education the students were receiving. In addition to these concerns, the reduction of student graduates during the pandemic decreased the number of applicants for job vacancies exasperating a pre-pandemic problem.

Notorious anti-Jk3 in a pregnant woman.

This is a case study of a 23-year-old pregnant Polynesian woman with anti-Jk3 identified in her plasma during her third visit to a hospital. This patient, with a history of mild anemia due to beta-thalassemia minor and two known transfusion of packed red cells came to an emergency room complaining of severe abdominal cramps. Her hemoglobin during her second hospital visit was 7.5 g/dL and her antibody screen was negative. Two units of crossmatch compatible packed cells were transfused with no adverse reaction and she was discharged. Four days post transfusion, she returned to the hospital complaining of back pain and fatigue and she was running a fever (101 degrees F). Her antibody screen was positive, direct antiglobulin testing was also positive and the eluate showed pan-agglutination with a red cell panel. Anti-Jk3 was identified in her plasma by the Red Cross and a delayed transfusion reaction was suspected. As a result, Kidd null crossmatch compatible units were obtained from relatives. The patient was successfully transfused and was discharged with a hemoglobin of 10.1 g/dL. The fetus appeared to be unaffected by the antibody. This case reiterates the hard-to-identify characteristics of Kidd antibodies and highlights the need for medical laboratory personnel to be informed on the prevalence of the Kidd null phenotype among various populations. Educating ethnic populations with rare phenotypes and organizing targeted blood drives may increase inventories of these rare blood phenotypes.

Anti-f in a 24-year-old male: a case study.

This is a case study of a 24-year-old male, having total knee arthroplasty, who is found to have an anti-f antibody, and denies history of previous blood product injection or blood transfusion. The anti-f antibody is produced due to exposure to the f antigen, and is one of the Rh blood group system's compound antigens expressed when the c and e alleles are in the cis position on the Rh chromosome. Patients with anti-f requiring transfusion could safely be transfused with units of blood lacking both the c and e antigens and units lacking only the c antigen.

Effects of incorporating a blood center tour in the immunohematology course.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the effects of incorporating a blood center tour in the immunohematology course on the confidence and knowledge of students DESIGN: In-class lecture on the major blood center activities and tour of the Red Cross. Pre- and post- tests administered. To compare levels of understanding, confidence and overall tour impact, paired T- test and Chi-Square analyses were performed and frequencies calculated. SETTING: Medical Technology program at Austin Peay State University, Clarksville TN and the American Red Cross in Nashville TN PARTICIPANTS: Fifteen students who registered for the immunohematology course. INTERVENTION: Two phases: First, a brief introduction, description and observation of the donation activities. Secondly, explanations and observation of blood components preparations, labeling, storage, distribution, and quarantine. Both phases included question and answer sessions. OUTCOME MEASURES: Comprehension of blood center activities; self confidence; increase knowledge of job alternative. RESULTS: Students showed an increase in course content knowledge; 62% on the pre-test and 69% on post-test (P= 0.004 ). Although the post-test score was better than the pre-test, 69% is not a great score. Students probably did not take the exam seriously since there was no grade involved. More students felt good (40%) about their confidence in facing the blood bank clinical rotations and ultimately the national certification exam. The tour perfectly complemented lectures. Interaction with other medical technologists was very informative (53%). Levels of understanding of major blood center activities increased (P< 0.05) except for the phlebotomy stage (P=0.07). CONCLUSION: A blood center tour incorporated into the immunohematology course is a valuable addition to the learning experience of students. Students have the opportunity to interact with employees in their workplace, with potential employers, and they build self confidence in the subject area.