Medical technology students reach out

It was Super Bowl Sunday, but the numbers that were drawing the attention of a group of medical technology students were those showing up on a blood test, not on a scoreboard.

The students, who volunteered that day to help out at a church health fair near Newark, Del., say they wanted to gain some real-world experience in their future profession while performing a public service. Interested parishioners stopping by the UD booth were able to have their cholesterol levels checked and to get some important health information.

Such community outreach isn't unusual for the CHNS Department of Medical Technology, according to Mary Ann McLane, associate professor in the department. She says students often take part in similar projects on and off campus to hone their skills.

The medical technology department operates a four-year undergraduate, professional program, accredited by the National Accrediting Agency for Clinical Laboratory Sciences. Medical technologists are clinical laboratory scientists whose work is related to the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of disease. The current nationwide shortage of health-care professionals includes medical technologists, many of whom have multiple job offers as soon as they graduate, the College says.

At the church health fair, the student volunteers used lab equipment on loan from the University Wellness Center, which enabled them to obtain results on a drop of blood from a client's fingertip within five minutes. The analysis showed a total cholesterol reading, as well as levels of the so-called good and bad cholesterol.

"We medical technologists are able to give what we call a 'lab diagnosis' and tell the person we've tested what kind of pattern the data indicates," McLane says. "We also give out general educational materials about cholesterol and, maybe most important, we suggest three or four questions the person might want to ask his or her physician."

Such information is vital, she says, because physicians rely heavily on lab tests but often lack the time to give patients detailed explanations of the results and their implications.

Erinn Oliver, CHNS '05, says volunteering at health fairs and other outreach events is valuable for students. "I've done clinicals at hospitals, but that was drawing blood, not running tests," she says. "So, this kind of work is good experience in terms of doing the test and learning how to explain the results."

Parishioners said holding the health fair, which also included other tests and educational displays, at the church during Sunday morning services was useful and convenient.

"I'm thinking of entering a triathlon, so I'm trying to get back into shape and improve my general well-being," John Palombo, who stopped by before attending Mass, said. "This seemed like a good place for me to start."

In addition to public education events, medical technology students at UD take part in other professional-preparation activities. For the past three years, for example, some students in McLane's honors course have attended a national legislative symposium in Washington, D.C., learning how to be advocates for various health issues.

"I hope it will also teach students a transferable skill about access to legislators and policy makers--how to approach them to discuss any topic," McLane says.