MEDICAL LABORATORY SCIENCES Communication Sciences & Disorders
It was just the beginning of what appeared to be a typical workday when I found myself rushing upstairs to the classroom where the seniors were about to take their very last final exam for the 2020 spring semester. This time in the spring semester is typically filled with final exams and great anticipation for the upcoming clinical rotations. Little did we know that this day marked the beginning of an incredible journey dedicated to thriving during a pandemic! My impromptu need for vigorous exercise was the result of an urgent phone call from the College of Health and Human Services (CHHS) dean relaying the provost’s message to cease all examinations. In-person classes were suspended, and we were all going home immediately! From that moment on, our focus was turned to clinical rotations. With some ingenuity, creativity, and a lot of dedication from the students, faculty, clinical coordinators, and staff, we made it. All medical laboratory sciences (MLS) students from the 2020 cohort graduated by the end of 2020! There were some significant delays with clinicals. Students’ practicum schedules had to be revised, adjusted, and then revised again. Overnight, the faculty had to develop clinical material that could be delivered remotely. We are all thankful to our clinical education coordinators who advocated for students’ education in the face of hospital lockdowns. It sure took some teamwork, and at the end all the students graduated. We celebrated the end of 2020 with our first Zoom certificate ceremony on Sunday, January 24, 2021. We continue to receive updates from students of the class of 2020. Read some of their stories in this newsletter. Some have gone on to graduate school or medical school and some are working in the lab alongside those that facilitated their practicum training during the pandemic. It has now been over a year since that fortuitous day. As things settle a little more every day, and we find our way back to the proverbial normal, we celebrate our MLS class of 2021 completing their clinicals and graduating in August 2021. The pandemic has put additional strains on already heavily taxed laboratory services across the nation, so our clinical instructors were juggling their workload and training students. Many of our clinical sites were and continue to be key COVID-19 testing sites across the nation. Therefore, we acknowledge their commitment not only to their jobs, but also to MLS education. A huge thanks to our clinical affiliates, education coordinators, and clinical instructors! Life on campus has also proved to be exhilarating. We had ABC 57 work with Professor Melissa Poua to film several clips on UV sanitation and face coverings in the MLS student labs as part of their ABC 57 Investigates series. You can view them here: UV light sanitation devices: Do they work? Are they worth your money? https://abc57. com/news/uv-light-sanitization-devices-do-they-work-are-they-worth-your-money Face coverings have become the new normal, but how well do they work? https:// abc57.com/news/abc57-investigates-face-coverings-have-become-the-new-normalbut-how-well-do-they-work We held The MLS Research Symposium (https://drive.google.com/file/d/149rXVjcez98C5HBsWTXN2E3G42F2FKQ/view) and celebrated MLS Professionals Week with on-campus activities and participation in the virtual 5K Lab Week Run; welcomed Dr. Moss, new MLS faculty and alumna of the MLS program; supported the HERBIE Clinic’s laboratory services; and continue to work on staying connected through our MLS Department Instagram page (follow us at #andrewsmlsdept). We are pleased to introduce our newest faculty member, MLS alumna Cristy Creighton-Moss who began July 1, 2021! You can read more about her in the interview on p. 26. As we welcome the class of 2022 to their Clinical Year Program, our hearts are filled with anticipation and expectation. We are grateful for your support. Please join us in praying for a safe and successful school year.
Karen A. Reiner, PhD, MT(ASCP), MSMLS ‘99
Associate Professor, Chair, Department of Medical Laboratory Sciences
N E W FAC U LT Y
Cristy Creighton-Moss
The Pulse 2021 / 23
