Terri Hintz is one of the small army of 100 laboratory technicians who work on the lower level of Altru Hospital. Until I met her, I thought the inner workings of the lab were none of my business. And I thought it must be awfully dull to stare all day into a microscope.
I met Terri and a bunch of other lab technicians at a public session called "Ask the Lab." It was held during their recent convention here in Grand Forks. There I learned that people may ask for printed reports of their lab tests. They should ask their doctors questions. In other words, people should take charge of their own health problems.
And I learned from the lab people that their work is fascinating. They are, in a way, detectives. Seventy percent to 80 percent of health care is determined by lab work.
Terri Hintz remembers how puzzled her mother in Devils Lake was when Terri changed her major at UND from biology to clinical lab science. But her mother now understands why Terri enjoys her work behind the scenes. Terri has been with Altru since 1995 and has moved up to the position of transfusion service supervisor.
She is so enthusiastic about her work in the lab that she encourages others to go into the same field.
ADVERTISEMENT
"It's a good field, and it pays well," she says. "What worries us is the exodus of experienced people. There are so many technicians around 50 who have years of experience. They will be leaving in the next 10 to 20 years, and we can foresee a shortage.
"There are so many avenues in the lab," she says, "including everything from management to research and testing.
"That's why I would recommend this work to others who enjoy science. By the year 2015, we expect a shortage of technicians to be five times that of nurses. We expect there will be as many as 100,000 vacancies. This field of work is virtually recession-proof."
The Wall Street Journal ran a front-page story on staff shortages in labs around the country this past Wednesday. The story indicated the shortage may put patients at risk.
Elaine Ramstad, a microbiologist at Altru for 27 years, says there's nothing mysterious about her work. It's science, and she loves it. She concedes, "Some people call us nerds, but we don't think we are nerds."
Dr. Marv Cooley is medical director of the lab at Altru. There are five other pathologists on the staff including Dr. Tim Weiland, pathology department chairman, Dr. Les Torgerson, Dr. Diane Iverson, Dr. Ann Brown and Dr. Laura Raymond. Laura Hagen is the lab manager.
A pathologist is a physician who examines tissues and is responsible for accuracy of laboratory tests. The pathologist interprets results that are important for the patient's diagnosis and recovery. And with advances in biomedical science, there are more than 2,000 tests available on blood and body fluids.
Medical technologists work in all areas of the laboratory including blood banking, chemistry, hematology, immunology and microbiology. They do a range of laboratory tests from premarital blood samples to the more complicated tests to uncover HIV/AIDS, diabetes and cancer.
ADVERTISEMENT
The pathologist's assistant is often the first person to look at samples of skin or organ tissue when they come to the lab. On any given day, the assistant may be dealing with samples from anything from a mole to tonsils.
Although they work unseen, Terri Hintz says she loves it when she is called on occasionally to answer questions. Sometimes, the patients seem like friends they never know. Aside from her career, Terri is a busy mother. She and her husband, Brad, have two children: Meghan, 11, and Matthew, 5. She has a sister, Shelly Semerad, who is anatomic pathology manager for Regions Hospital of St. Paul.
When she planned the public session on "Ask the Lab," Terri and her colleagues were prepared for questions about swine flu and the HPV virus. They used some materials from sources such as U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
For example:
Q. How do I know if I have an HPV infection?
A. Most women who have HPV infections never know it. That is one reason to get regular Pap tests. In a Pap test, a cell sample is taken from your cervix and looked at with a microscope.
Q. If I eat oatmeal for 30 days and decrease my cholesterol by 4 points, what does that mean?
A. Nothing. Cheerios and oatmeal are good for you, but a decline of 4 points is insignificant.
ADVERTISEMENT
Reach Hagerty at (701) 772-1055 or send e-mail to mhagerty@gra.midco.net .
