Immature Granulocyte (IG) flags are more than just a numerical threshold they’re an insight into a patient’s underlying immune response. Whether you’re new to blood film review or an experienced BMS refreshing your practice, this guide will walk you through how to approach samples flagged for IG review, how to decide if a manual differential white cell count (DWCC) is needed, and how to interpret what you see on the slide.
There’s something that underpins an excellent working laboratory and it’s not difficult to guess what that is; It’s the staff. But understanding how we arrive at the finished product of a well rounded, educated, and knowledgeable Biomedical Scientist (BMS) is a bit more of a complex task.
Developing a Biomedical Scientist from their initial days in the laboratory through to a competent and knowledge hungry BMS is a process in itself and I think it’s important to discuss the importance of how we can start out on the right foot. Ultimately at some point you will either be involved with training a biomedical scientist or you may be one that is currently training and so I would like this article to serve as a primer on the training environment itself. Training is not a task, it’s a culture.
It’s always important to start out on the right foot. It’s often said that failing to prepare is preparing to fail and I think this is as true in the laboratory as it is anywhere else. So if you’re a BMS in training or a training officer responsible for the training environment itself, or someone with a bit of an interest in training then this is the article for you.
In my previous post I provided an overview of my time on placement. What I’d like to do with this post, is give a little more insight into the on goings of the haematology laboratory, the sections within it that a biomedical scientist can work in and what goes on in these sections.
As I mentioned in previous posts, there are a number of criteria that must be met in order to attain registration as a biomedical scientist. Today I will be discussing the placement year. Details of what went on during my placement year, how I coped and what I felt like throughout the year.
So, I had other plans for what my first scientific based post was going to be. However, as you may have noticed. The scientific community has rather obsessively purported this story around the globe. As a scientific blogger and specifically as the “Blood Geek” I really think I should make comment on this article and explain to you all what the fuss is all about and whether it is, everything it’s cracked up to be.
Eh, Blood Geek? I came here for some high quality science and I’ve seen none yet. What are you doing?
So you’re still here so far. Perhaps you’ve only just stumbled here and you’re wondering to yourself. Where is all the science? Well I’m here to answer that question for you and I’m writing a whole post about it because I want to leave my readers without a doubt in their minds as to the direction of this blog.
As we progress through this journey, we arrive at the beginning of my journey to becoming a Biomedical Scientist (BMS). When we last left off, I had realised where I was really meant to be. On a different side of healthcare. Somewhere that I could apply a much more scientific approach to, but all the while maintaining a presence in the journey of my patients. Biomedical sciences was the role for me, so I applied to the course during my working year out and thankfully was accepted to the programme. But what goes on during the initial years of the course? and how does a BMS come to bridge the gap of science and medicine?
At this stage, with a little background provided in previous posts. It’s about time I started to bring you up to speed with my story. So lets start at the end of my BTEC study and discuss the swings and roundabouts method that I appear to have employed, in order to get where I am today. It’ll probably be nothing like what you’re expecting.
Fantastic question!
Most people whom I speak to about my day to day life ask me this question. Eventually. A biomedical scientist can be so obscure a title to some people, that it takes them a while to get there. So how, and when do we get there? indulge me if you will in a little script writing…
Blood Geek 