CHP Conversations

Medical Laboratory Sciences: Heroes Behind the Scenes Part 2

February 13, 2023 The VCU College of Health Professions Season 1 Episode 7
CHP Conversations
Medical Laboratory Sciences: Heroes Behind the Scenes Part 2
Show Notes Transcript

What do brain-eating amoeba, blood transfusions and COVID-19 tests have in common? Medical Laboratory Scientists, that’s what. In this 3-part series, hear from faculty and students in the Medical Laboratory Sciences program at VCU as they explain their unlikely journeys in this field. Historically a “behind the scenes” role, Medical Laboratory Science is one of the most under-recognized healthcare careers; however, MLS professionals provide answers to life-saving decisions every day. They do everything from providing cancer testing results, to predicting the correct antibiotic to prescribe, to typing the correct blood for surgery.

Features guest
Celestina Klaye - VCU MLS Student

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Welcome  to  CHP Conversations: a podcast series produced by the VCU College of Health Professions. This  series  includes  conversations with  faculty,  students, and  alumni  who  exemplify our  mission  to  create influential  leaders  in  healthcare. Hello,  thank  you  for  joining  us here  on  CHP  Conversations. My  name  is  Chelsea  Gary. I  am  the  Director  of  recruitment and  student  programs  here  in the  College  of  Health  Professions at  Virginia  Commonwealth  University. What  do  brain  eating  amoeba, blood  transfusions,  and  COVID-19 tests  have  in  common?  Out  of  guesses? Medical  laboratory  science, that's  what. Historically  a  behind  the  scenes  role, medical  laboratory  science  is  one  of the  most  underrecognized  healthcare  careers. However,  MLS  professionals  provide answers  to  life-saving  decisions  every  day. In  this  three-part  series, we  will  hear  from  faculty  and  students  in the  medical  laboratory  sciences  program  at VCU  as  they  explain their  unlikely  journeys  in  this  field. Today  we're  joined  by  one  of  our  master's  students in  the  Medical  Laboratory Sciences  Department  here  in  CHP. I'm  here  with  Celestina Klay. Celestina  how  are  you  today?  I'm  good. How  are  you?  I am  great. Could  you  tell  us  a  little  bit  about  yourself? Yes. Hi  everyone. My  name's  Celestina Klay. I  am  a  first slash second  year  student  in the  accelerated  master's  program  at the-  accelerated  Clinical  Medical  Laboratory  Science program  here  at  VCU. My  family, I  always  think  this  question  is  so  weird  for  me, but  my  family  lives  in  Dumfries,  Virginia  right  now, but  I'm  military-  military  brats. So  I've  lived  everywhere  and  anywhere  and  everywhere, but  I  was  originally  born  in  West  Africa,  Ghana. Awesome thank  you  so  much  for  sharing. So  starting  off,  you mentioned  you're  kind  of  like  a  first  year, second  year,  kind  of  meshing  of  the  two. What  does  that  exactly  look  like? Yeah.  So  basically  the medical  laboratory  science  program, we  have  a  couple  of  different  masters routes, routes. So  I  got  my  undergraduate  degree in  medical  laboratory  sciences. So  because  I  kinda  did  that, I  had  the  opportunity  to  do  an  accelerated  masters, which  means  I  was  able  to  get  my-  I'm able  to  get  my  master's  degree  in  just  one  year. That's  awesome. Wish  I  could  have  signed up for something like that. Yeah it's  pretty-  it's  pretty  great. Yeah.  At  the  undergraduate  level. I  mean,  did  so you  majored  in medical  laboratory  sciences  at  the  undergraduate level. I did. Is  that  something  you  always  knew  you wanted  to  do  or  get  into?  Not  really.  I  think I  knew  from  a  young  age  I  wanted  to do  something  in  health  care. And,  you  know,  when  you're  younger, it's  always  the  traditional 'I  want  to  be  a  Doctor,  I  want  to  be  a  nurse'. But  I  think  as  I  grew  up  and  as I  took  classes  and  do  different  things, I  kinda  realized  I wanted  to  be  in  the  healthcare  setting, but  I  didn't  want  to  be  directly  involved  with patients  as  like  a  doctor  or  a  nurse,  just because  I'm  a  super  nervous  person. So  I  get  really  nervous  talking  to  people. And  so  that  was  something  I  worried  about  and just  doing  my  research and  just  figuring  out  what  I  wanted  to  do. I  came  upon  medical  laboratory  sciences actually  from  a  student  who talked  about  it  at  an  open  house  from  VCU when  I  was like a  senior  in  high  school. So  after  that,  I  did  some  research  with  my  parents and  I  came  to  I  came  to  realize, Oh,  I  loved  hands-on  things. I  love  lab  work. So  this  is  something  that  I  want  to  explore  doing  it. And so  I  just  got  on my  prereqs  and  started  applying  for  the  program. So I  know  you  mentioned  a  little  bit  as  far  as  not really  wanting  that  patient in-  that  direct  patient  interaction, could  you  share  with  us  some  other  ways  that  you see  yourself  kind  of  impacting  health  care, impacting  the  lives  of patients  through  your  work  with  medical  lab  sciences? Yeah,  definitely.  I  think I  think  everybody  talks  about  it, but  a  really  good  example  was  during  COVID. A lot of people  don't  know, but  medical  laboratory  scientists, we  were  the  ones  who  are  designing  all  the  COVID  tests, the  assays  running  all  those  testing. And  people,  I  think  a  lot  of  people  think  that  it was  like  doctors  or  pharmacists  who  did  that. But  actually  like  different  hospitals in  the  lab,  people  were  sitting  down, they  were  developing  all  these  assays  because  when COVID  really  first  began,  nobody  knew  what  to  do. There  was  nothing  that  we  could  test  on. So  in  the  laboratory,  medical  lab  scientists, medical  technologists,  they  were  just testing  different  things  and  seeing  what  worked. And  so  I  think  a  lot  of  people  don't  know  that, but it's actually,  I  mean, we've  seen  how  COVID  has  impacted  the  world. But  medical  laboratory  sciences, they  were  the  ones  who  were  there were  getting  all  the  COVID  samples. They  were  testing  it  every  day  for  8 hours  a  day. So  really  just  immersed  in  all  of  that. Wow.  Yeah,  I  know  prior  to  COVID,  I'll  be  honest, I  didn't  even  know  the  direct  impact  that medical  laboratory  sciences  had on  just  healthcare  in  general. So  with  your  experience,  both  at the  undergraduate  level  or even  currently  at  the  master's  level, have  you  had like direct  experience with  working  with  patients  or  analysis while  in  the  program? Yeah. Actually  shout  out  to  my  program, but  as-  we  come  in  as  juniors, so  we'd  get  our  first  two  years  during the  prereqs  and  then  we  come  in  as  juniors. So  your  second  semester, second  semester  of  our  junior, were  actually  given  the  opportunity  to  apply  to  be student  workers  at  the  VCU  Health  Hospital  in  the  labs. Nice. So  there's  about  15  positions  that  are  given. So  we  all  interview  and then  we  interview  with  each  of  the  labs, each  of  the  different  disciplines. And  then  they  kind  of  pick which  students  they  feel  would  best  be  suited  in  their  lab. So  I  worked  in  the  microbiology  lab. And  microbiology  was  actually  a  lot  of  COVID  testing. So  (I'm  sure)  that  was the  first  thing  I  was  actually  trained  on (Oh, wow.) was  doing COVID  testing  because  at the  time  there  were  so  understaffed  as  well, you know, with  everyone  just  getting  sick  so  easily. So us students,  we  actually  really, from  what  they  told  us,  we  really  did  make an  impact  on  all  the  labs  that  we  were  able  to  help  out. And  a  lot  of  us  were picking  up  extra  hours  just  to  help  out  with  that  load, especially  COVID  got  better,  but  then  it  got  worse. And  especially  when  it  got  worse, like  we  were  all  in  the  lab just like,  testing  every  day, anytime  anytime  we  didn't  have  class  and we  were  free, they  wanted  us  in  the  lab  just helping  out  as  best  we  can. So  a  lot  of  us, by  the  end  of  our  junior  years, our year  in  the  program, imagine  like  we  all  had so  much  hands-on  experience  already. I'm  sure  that's  great  because  you  do  get  that  hands  on (Yeah.) experience. But  you're  like,  wow,  this  is my first, you know, first year in the program.  It  was  definitely-  it  was a  lot  of  first (Yeah.) just  because  like the  roles  that  we  were  that  we  had. I  mean,  we  were  we  were  basically  one  of the  workers  like  we  were  working  alongside  them. We  were  doing  everything  they were  doing  just  not  as  much  as  they  were  doing, but  we  were  trained  in  a  handful  of  areas. That's  awesome.  Yeah,  that's  experience you  don't  get  in  the  class  for  sure. So  could  you  talk  a  little  bit  about  what that  transition  was  like? So you started  at  the  undergraduate  level. And  was  that  here  at  VCU? It was, yeah.  Okay.  So  what  was  that  transition  like going  from  the  undergraduate  program then  to  the  accelerated  master's  program. It  was  difficult. I  won't  lie  just  because accelerated  masters  are  not  like  normal  master's  program. So  I  graduated  May  of  this,  May  2022,  of  this  past  year. But  during  my  last  semester,  while  finishing  undergrad, I  was  also  doing  graduate  work  at  the  same  time, just  so  I  had that  window  to  be  able  to  get  my  Masters  in  the  year. So  it  was  definitely difficult  because, you know,  I  was  also  sitting  from my  board  and  my  certification exam.  I  was  also  making  sure that  I  passed  my  undergrad  classes  to  graduate, but  then  also  making  sure  that  I  was  passing those  master's  courses  in  order  to fully  be  accepted  into  the  master's  program  this  fall. That's  a  lot  at  once. Yeah. Like talk  about  time  management and balance. Oh yeah, definitely something  I  had  to  really  make sure  I  balanced  everything  out  well. So with the  board  certification, is  that  something-  that  was  the  exam  that you  needed  to  take  at  the  end of  your  undergraduate  experience? Yes. So  we  all  have  to take  the  board  certifications, the BOCs, just  so we  are  fully  certified medical  laboratory  scientists  and  that allows  us  to  have  that  full  range, that  full  scope  to  be  able  to  work  in  any  laboratory, work  in  any  setting  that  needs  an  MLS  degree  for.  Perfect. How did the  program  prepare  you  for  that? It definitely- it  prepared  us  very  well. I  think  all  our- from  the  minute  we  started  all  our  classes, all  our  exams  were exactly  to  the  T  of  what  was  going  to be  on  our  board  of  certification. So  we  would  go over  something  in  class  and  professor  would be  like, 'okay,  from  what  we've  heard  from  previous  students, this  is  a  very  big  to  know  for  the  exam'. So  definitely  helped  to  minimize  that extra  like  sitting[?]  on  top  of  everything because  a  lot  of  us, as  long  as  you  are  doing  well  in the  classes, you  are  going  to  do  well  on  the  exam and  that's  just  how  it  always  went. If  you  did  want  the  classes, it  was  the  same  exact  thing. Nothing  new,  nothing  extra. Just  maybe  a  little  harder, but  still  the  same  thing  on  the  certification  exam. Awesome.  Thank  you.  I'm  going  to pivot  a  little  bit  just  to  talk a  little  bit  about the  curriculum  and  medical  lab  sciences. So  I  know  there  is  a  difference,  of  course,  with undergraduate  curriculum  and  courses  that  you've taken  and  what's  required  at  the  at  the  master's  level. Have  there  been  any  classes  to  date  that  kind  of  stand out  or  that  are  coming  up that  you're  really  excited  about  taking? Yeah,  I  think  my  personal  favorite was  our  blood  banking  slash  transfusion  medicine  course. So with that  course  we're  learning  how  to blood  type. We're  learning  each  other's  blood  types. We're  learning  how  if  a  patient, if  we  have  a  patient  who  comes  into  the  hospital  and there  might  be  a  little  too  much, but  they're  massively  bleeding  on  the  table. What  type  of  blood  can  we  give  them that  will  be  best  suited  for  their  body. We  will  learn  how  people have  different  types  of  antibodies  in  your  blood, then  nobody  really  knows  about, but  if  you  give  a  patient  the  wrong  blood, they  could,  it  could  lead  to  severe  consequences. So  I  loved  that  class. We  were  able  to  blood  type  each  other  in  class, I  finally  learned  my  blood  type, which  O pos(itive) by  the  way. That's very- that's good information to know. I  always  wanted  to  know  that. So  it's  definitely  my  favorite  course.  I'm  hoping  to help  like  with  lab  next  semester and so. Is  blood  banking  something  that  you  knew  you  would maybe  have  it  interesting  when  you  started the  program  or  just  something  you  stumbled  upon? I  didn't  really  know  much  about it  entering  the  program  just  a little  brief  synopsis  about  what  I'd  heard like  going  through  the  interview  process  and  everything. I  didn't  expect  to  like  it because  I  knew  it was  gonna  be  a  hard  subject.  It's  not  easy. It's  one  of  the,  I  think  it's  one  of the  subjects  that  as  medical  laboratory  sciences, what  we  have  to  be  near  perfect with  just  because  blood  is  something  that is  so  easy  to like  really  damage  a  patient. So  I  didn't  expect  to  like  it and  to  able- and to  know  it  so  well, but  it's  something  that  has  really  stuck  with  me. Awesome. Well,  hopefully  one  day  I  can  figure  out what  type is  because  I  do  not  know  that. Are  there  certain, I  guess, common  misconceptions  about  medical  laboratory  sciences, just  in  general  or  maybe  the  program  here  at  VCU? I  think.  I  mean, just  in  general,  I-  like  I  work  I  work  in  a  lab  right  now. I  think  a  lot  of  the  things that  often  people  think  is  that the  nurses  are  the  ones  running all  the  tests  or the  doctors  are  the  ones  running  all  the  tests. When  in  reality,  they're  just-  they're  doing  a  lot, don't  get  me  wrong,  but  they're  sending the  testing  to  us  and  we're  doing  all  the  testing. So  I  think  that  people  think  we  don't  do  a  lot. But  if  you  realize  if  a  hospital  is  packed, our  lab  is  very  busy  just making  sure  we're  getting  all  of  those  results  out  in  a  timely  manner. So  doctors  and  nurses  have  a  large  workload, but  we  often  have a  larger  workload  because  everything  they're  asking (yeah, yeah), they're  testing  on  a  patient were  the  ones  who  are  running  it and  making  sure  they  get  it  asap. Yeah. I guess  speaking  about  that,  that  workload, how  do  you  balance that, well as  a  student  and  then also  that  student  worker  perspective  as  well. How  do  you  balance  everything? And  I  believe  you're  involved  on  campus  also, which  I  know  can  also  be  a  lot. Yeah. So  how  do  you  balance  at  all? So I  know  for  me,  like   the  job  I  have now  because  I  am  certified and  I  didn't  get  everything  to  my  undergrad. I'm  like  working  like  a  big girl  job. Go you! Thank you. So  with  this  job, that's  something  I  worried  about  just  going in  just  because  realistically, if  I  could  just  focus  on  school, I  would  love  to  buy  rent  is  expensive,  nothing's  cheap. Not at all. But  it's  pretty  good. I  think a  lot  of the  managers  and  people  I've  worked  with in  the  lab  understand  that  I  am  a  student, so  I  know  my  boss  is  very  understanding  about  my,  my  time, my work schedule. And  sometimes, not  right  now,  because it's  flu  season  and  COVID  is  picking  up and  everything's  not  great  right  now, but  I  do  often  have  some  downtime in the- and at  work  where  like  I  am  able  to  talk  to  some of  my  coworkers and be like, I  have  a  paper  due  tomorrow. Would  you  mind  if  I  just like took  a  longer  lunch  break  just  to  work  on  it? And  so  I  think  just  being  vocal  about  what's going  on  in  my  life  and  just  like  letting my  coworkers  and   bosses  know  has  also  been  really  helpful. But  like  you  were  saying, my  time  management  has  had  to  be  really  great. So  I  like,  I  scheduled my  whole  month  in  advance  like  I  know  like, I  know  what  shifts  I'm  working  for  all  December and  it  also  helps  me  with  that  school  workload  too. So  I  know  if  I  have  a  final  this  day, I  can't  work  this  day. So  it's  definitely  helped  a lot  to  be  really  good  about  my  time. And  I  know  you're  involved  on  campus  as  well.  Yes. So  what  are  some  of  the  ways  that  you've  gotten  involved while here? Yeah so  right  now,  I am  a  recruitment  ambassador for  the  College  of  Health  Professions. And  I  also  sit  on  the-  I'm also the  secretary  of the  College  of  Health  Professions Executive  Student  Council, and  then  I  also  am  secretary for  an  organization  over in Monroe  Park  campus  called  The Flyest  that  raises money  for  the  Richmond  community while  putting  on  fashion  shows  as  well. So  yeah, you  are  very (yeah), very, very  busy. I  know  that  the  Google  Calendar  probably comes (Yeah, very) in super handy for sure. Oh  my  gosh. So I  guess  in  addition  to,  of  course, time  management  skills,  are  there  other um,  I  guess, nuggets  of  advice  or, kind of,  things  that students  that  might  be  interested  in  this  program  should prepare  for  to, um yeah, I  guess  best  prepare  them before entering the program. Yeah. I  think  even  from  just  the  people  I've  talked  to, I  think  a  lot  of  people  worry  about  just like  the  prerequisites  that get- that about  getting  into  the  program. And  I  know  for  me,  I  was applying  like  in  the  beginning  of  COVID. So  I  was  at  home  like  away  from  campus, not  really  knowing  how  to  proceed  with  that. And  I  know  that  for  me. I  struggled  with  some  classes in  my  prereqs, I  definitely  struggled  with  it. And I  think  that like my  biggest  advice  for  people who  are  interested  in  MLS  or  want  to even  just  get  like  a  professional  degree,  like  that one C or  that  one  D  in  organic  chemistry  or  bio isn't  gonna  be  the  end  of  the  world. So  I  think  just like  not  letting just like one  class  or  one  obstacle  stop  you  because  I'm, I'm  glad  like  I  struggled  with  chemistry  even so  I  still  take  chemistry  now  and  it's  still something  that  I  struggle  with  every  day. But  I  think  just  like  knowing  that  I struggled  with  it  has  helped  me  to, like,  do  better  and  just like, address  and  get  the  help  that  I  need. I  think that's  really  inspiring  because thinking  back  to  one, C  that  you've  got,  you're  like, Oh  my  gosh,  the  world  is  ending. I  know  a  lot  of  students  talking  about  organic  chemistry (That was, that was my-) which is kind of like that mystical beast.  That  was  my  ultimate  beast (Yeah)- I know I  struggled. That  was  the  one  class  I did  not  do  well  in  it  all  and  I  thought  it would  hold  me  back  from  getting  into  the  program. And  even  during  my  interview with  one  of  the  professors  right  now, I  was  very  honest  and  I  was  like- and ironically,  my  end, the  person  who  interviewed  me was  the  chemistry  professor (What are the odds?), which did  help. But I  told  him  I  was  like, I'm  not  good at  chemistry.  Was  like, I've  never  been  good  at  chemistry. You  can  look  at  my  transcripts, but  before  you  look, I'm  telling  you  right  now  I'm  not  good  at  chemistry. And so  even  before  I  got  into  the  program, like  he  knew  that  this  was  something  I  struggled  with, so  it  definitely  helped. Whenever  I'd  have  like  a  rough  test or something  just  to  go  to  him  and  he'd  be  like, 'okay,  I  know  you're  struggling  with  this. Like  how  can  we or  what  can  we  do  to  kinda  help  you  get over  that  obstacle  or  that,  that  problem?' Awesome. So  faculty  are  pretty  open (Yeah definitely) and kind of have like an open door  policy (For sure) for the most part. I  think with it  being a  small  program  with only like  30-something  students, we  all  get  pretty  close  to  each  other. We  get  really  close  to  our  professors and  honestly  like  it's  weird, but  the  two  years  in  the  program, they  really  end  up  being  your  best  friends  because they're  always  there  and  like- I've never,  I've  never  had  a  problem or  been  scared to  like  reach out  to them  about  anything  which  is,  which  has  really  helped  me, (Yeah, yeah) especially  even  now  like  as  a  master  student. Yeah. So  you  mentioned  the  interview  process? Yes. So  that's  part  of  the  application-  is that,  I'm  assuming  after  you  submit  your  application? Yeah. So  basically  the  application  process is  kinda  like  a  rolling  admission. So  you  submit  your  application and  then  you'll  get  an  email  saying we'd  would  like  to  schedule  an  interview. And  I  think  people  always  like  hear interview and think  like (Dun, dun dun..) really  daunting, yeah. But  really  it's  just  like  a  formality  just for  you  to kind of, professor to  kinda  ask  you  like,  what  do  you  know  about the  program? Sure. Like, you may not  know  much. But, really.  you  don't  want  to  be an  art  student  coming  into  a  lab (Right, right)-  you know, that  just  to  make  sure you  know  what  you're  getting  into  and  just to  kinda  familiar  familiarize  yourself  with. Okay,  well,  if  you  get in  or  when  you  get  in  for  the  next  two  years, this  is  what's  gonna  be  happening. This  is  what's  expected  of  you. So  I  think  the, I  think  the  interview  process  honestly  helps the  applicant  more  than  it  helps the  professors  who  are  in  the  program  itself. Yeah. It's  a  really  good  way  to  put  that because  I  think  when  you, in  most  processes  where  you're  you're  applying, it's  either  just  something  you're  submitting  by  paper (yeah) or something  online  and  it's  just  words on  a  screen  or  on  a  sheet  of  paper. So being  able  to  actually  have  that  conversation?- Yeah. I  mean,  like  my  class, we  were,  my  class we  did  all  our  interviews  over Zoom. Again, this  was  like- I  think like  January  2020  was around  when  everything-  April  around  March, April  time  of  like  2020  when  everything  was  like  [inaudble]. Yeah. Right in the thick of it. And  so  especially  as  a  lab  program, a  lot  of  the  questions  was  like, how  are  we  going  to  proceed  if  we're  like online  right  now? Like  how  are  we  going  to  proceed? So  the  interview  process  definitely  really helped  professors  to kind of just like reassure  us  that, yes,  you  are  going  to  be  required  to  be  here, but  we're  doing  everything  we can  to  make  sure  you  guys  are  protected  and  everything. So  it  was,  it was  weird  not  being  able  to  have  an  interview  in  person, but  obviously  a  lot  of  things  still  are  not in-person now with  interviews  and  stuff. So  it  was like a  good, still  a  little  daunting, but  it  was  it  was  good. I  really  enjoyed  my  interview. Wow, I  never  thought  I  would  hear  that.  Like I  really  enjoyed  my interview. So that's a good sign, that's  a  good  sign. Yeah,  for  sure.  So  taken your, you know,  your  transition  into  the  program, the  application  process, even  preparing  prior  to  applying, are  there  any  gems  or words  of  wisdom  or  advice  you  would  give to a  student  that  is  hearing  about  medical  lab, lab  sciences  for  the  first  time? Like  maybe  through  this  podcast? Yeah.  Hello. How  are  you? Are  there  any  words  of  advice  that  you would  give  them  as  far  as  next  steps, how  do  they  break  into  it? Um,  you  know,  kind  of a 'what's  next'? Yeah.  I  think, um, like, don't-  I  mean,  I  feel  like a lot of people say this,  but  don't  stress  out  too  much. I  think  that  this- it's a  rigorous  program  when  you  first  start,  no  lie. But, um,  I  mean,  your  group  of  students  that  you're with, like  we're  all-  we  all  got  very  close. Like  some  of  them  I  talked  to  every  day, some  of  them  I  worked  with  for  so  long. So  I  think  that  this  program  definitely  helps you  to  see  that that  medical  laboratory sciences  are  very  much  needed, but  that  there's  also  so  much  more you  can  do  with  this  degree. Sure. There  are  so  many  paths  and so  many  different  directions  you  can  go. So, I think- I  mean,  from  a,  from a  lot  of  students  I've  talked  to  who  are  interested. A  lot  of  them  are  like,  well, I'm  also  interested  in  doing this  and  I  want  to  do  this  and  this  and  this. And  I  always  say  to  them,  well, this  is  such  a  big  stepping  stone (Yeah) because I  think  I  was  talking  to  one  student. She's  like,  Oh,  like,  I  want  to  go  to  med  school, but  I  also  wanted  to  MLS. And  I  was  like,  Well,  we've  had  students  who have  gone  through  our  program who  are  excelling  in med  school  because  they  went  through  that, that  rigorous  learning  and  training  as  an  undergrad. And  so  they  were  immensely  prepared  for  the  future. So it definitely  prepares  you  for  a  lot  of  stuff. I'm  really  glad  you  mentioned. Yeah. You know we- As  far  as  like  recruitment  ambassadors  and  myself, you know, we  come  into  contact  with  a  lot of  students  are  like,  Yeah, I'm  pre-med  or  I  wanna do  dentistry, or mostly  pre-med, honestly.  Yeah. I  mean,  when  I  first  when  I  first  came  into  the  program, (Yeah) I  was  pre  physician  assistant. (Okay, okay) I was pre-PA. Okay, yeah, yeah. So I  was  definitely  like, oh like how  is this going  to  help. Like  I  thought  about  that  at  times for  sure. But  I  think  like-  this  is  so  funny. I  watched,  I  loved  Grey's  Anatomy. And so (of course) sometimes  I'll  be  watching Grey's  Anatomy  and  they'll  order a lab  test  and  I'm  like, that's  incorrect.  That's  not  right. You're like fact-checking. Right, so. Or even like  at  work,  sometimes  we  have doctors  who  call  us  up  and  they're  like, Oh,  my  patient  has  this, what  test  should  I  order? It's like-  That's- wow.  Yeah. So it's  like  a  doctor  who's  had  all  this  training  still come  to  us  for- so you're  learning  the  same  things. And  there's  a  lot  of  times where-  I   mean, I often  think  that  all  health  science  overlaps. Of  course, yeah.  So you  just  have  to  make sure  that  like  if  you  want  to  do  something  else, it  kinda  like  intertwines  what  you  wanna  do. Okay. No,  that  makes  complete  sense. Thank  you.  Okay.  So  that's kinda  the  end  of  my, like, official  questioning. At  the  end  of  our  student  episodes, I  always  like  to  do  what's  called  a  lightning  round, of like  chip  and  choose.  Okay. Okay,  so  I'm  gonna  give  you  either  two  options  or just  a  really  short  question  and  just answer  the  first  thing  that  comes  to  mind.  Okay. Okay. Okay. Alright, cool let's go. Alright,  so  your  favorite  place  on  campus? The  library. Oh,  very  studious. Yes. So  if  you  didn't  study  medical  lab  sciences, what  do  you  think  you  would  have  done? I  think  I  would  have  done  genetics. I'm  actually  hoping  to  get  my  PhD  in genetics  and  do  a  little  bit  of  lab  science  with  it. So I  think  I  would  have  done  I  would  have  done  genetics. Very cool! You  guys  in  podcast land, you  can't  see  the  face- I'm  like,  okay,  I'm seeing  it. I  didn't-  we've  never  had  that  conversation, so  that's  good  to  know.  Okay. Let's  see. The  last  local  foods  spot  you've  dined  at? Oh,  I  actually  I'm  very  big  on  local (Ooo) eating. Okay.  Yeah.  Okay.  Okay. The  last  spot  I think  may  have  been  Jamaica  House. Shout  out  to  them.  Delicious. Jamaica  house  is  a  good  favorite. Yes. I'm  not  going lie,  I  also  like  Karina's. So I'll throw  that  out  there  on  the list. Ooh, Karina's is good. I love  their  beef  patties. And  now  I'm  getting  hungry.  Okay,  and  last  one, Nutsy  the  Squirrel, Rodney  the  Ram- Oh  man,  I  should  have  known  his  name- or,  I  think  his  name  is  Kickaroo? Kickaroo is the Kangaroo for the Richmond Kickers. I  did not know.  I've only been to one soccer game (I did not know we had a soccer team) so I'm sorry. Okay yes. Honestly.  I  only  really,  to  be  honest, I  only  know  Rodney  the  Ram, so  I'm  going  to  pick Rodney. Perfect. Okay. Thank  you  so  much (of course)  for  spending  time  with  us today  and  really  just  sharing about  your  experience  as  a  student. I  know  I  learned  a  great  deal. I  hope  our  listeners  have  as  well. If  you  have  any  questions  about how  to  get  in  contact  with the  medical  laboratory  sciences  department  or  any of  our  other  programs  here  in the  College  of  Health  Professions, certainly  shoot  us  an  email. That  information  will  be  in the  show  notes  also  check  us  out  on  Instagram  at  VCU  CHP. We  look  forward  to  talking with  you  guys  soon  and  have  a  good  one. Bye.