This cell appeared on a Facebook
group to which I subscribe. So what is it? Definitely myeloid… More myelocyte
than pro-myelocyte but definitely odd-looking.
Perhaps the suggestions of a giraffe eating a doughnut aren’t
that far off target?
This is (supposed to be) a reflective diary by a (not very) anonymous biomedical scientist who works somewhere in the south of England. One day this diary may well be submitted to the Health and Care Professions Council as evidence of ongoing continual professional development....
26 June 2015 (Friday) - Sick Sinus Syndrome
A diagnosis I’d not seen before; Sick Sinus Syndrome.
Sick sinus syndrome, (also called sinus node dysfunction), is an umbrella term
for a group of arrhythmias seeming to be caused by a malfunction of the sinus
node, the heart's primary pacemaker.
It is often associated with ischaemic heart disease and
valvular lesions.
Bradycardia-tachycardia syndrome is a variant of sick sinus
syndrome in which slow arrhythmias and fast arrhythmias alternate.
Didn’t know that….
25 June 2015 (Thursday) - Artificial Blood
Here’s
a depressing article. Artificial blood will be undergoing clinical trials
in less than two years. Whilst it can only be a good thing for those needing
blood transfusions, quite frankly I’m the wrong side of fifty to be being made
redundant. From a purely personal point of view I can only hope that these
trials drag on until I am safely retired.
Mind you I can remember when I started in this line of work
(in 1981) being told of dogs in Japan
23 June 2015 (Tuesday) - IBMS Newsletter
The IBMS Newsletter came through via email this morning…. I
was already drafting an entry for this blog whinging about how I’ve found
several IBMS Gazettes (or whatever they
call it these days) still in their wrappers. My argument was that I don’t
read magazines and how they should send it in e-format.
I glanced at this morning’s E-newsletter… it didn’t grip me.
In fact one of the few articles which were actually about science and
technology (as opposed to paper-pushing)
was that article from I “F” love science I blogged about last week.
18 June 2015 (Thursday) - Death of a White Cell
From the Facebook Group “I
F@!@ Love Science “ came a rather interesting article about
the death of white cells.
“In a world first, scientists have
managed to film a time-lapse video of the death of a white blood cell. What
they’ve discovered is that in its final moments of life, it tries to
warn the rest of the immune system to the presence of its killer.”
Obviously sexed up for the layman, its still rather
interesting…
16 June 2015 (Tuesday) - Learning from Incidents
An email
came around listing various incidents which have happened in the Trust. I’m not
going to reproduce that list here; but suffice it to say there are always
lessons to be learned…
15 June 2015 (Monday) - NHS England Newsletter
NHS England
send out emails every day to me. I always read through them but..... took at
today's...
Fast
tracking on-line services, replacing SEN statements, proposed changes to
national SOPs, public workshops.... I've got a lump in my neck that won't go
away. Will any of this do anything about getting my lump sorted?
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Consultation
on Proposed Changes to Standard Operating Procedures: The Cancer Drugs Fund
for 2015/16…
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10 June 2015 (Wednesday) - New BCSH Guidelines
New
guidelines from the British Committee
for Standardisation in Haematology:
·
Management
of AML in pregnancy
·
Guidelines
on cancer and thrombosis
·
Clinical
use of apheresis procedures for the treatment of patients and collection of
cellular therapy products
More clinical than practical-lab-based, but always interesting...
8 June 2015 (Monday) - Bloodmed Newsletter
I was
rather excited by today’s email from bloodmed (dot com) The news section had articles on News paternal age
linked to blood cancer risk, an equation describing blood flow and how breast-feeding
may prevent leukemia
The
articles were quite interesting, but I was rather keen to look at the Trainees
and CPD section as (apparently) new content had
been added.
I clicked –
nothing happened….
It says
somewhere in the CPD regulations that I’m supposed to try to do CPD – sometimes
it’s not successful.
7 June 2015 (Sunday) - On The Night Shift
Last
night I had an interesting case; young (ish) lad with sore
throat and raised glands. Raised monocytes on the blood count
prompted me to make a blood film. Characteristic cells seen under the
microscope meant I performed a glandular fever test. Positive.
I
felt rather smug with myself as I phoned the Emergency Care Centre
with the news. the staff there were also pleased with my findings.
This
morning on the Medical Laboratory Science Facebook group I saw that
someone else on their night shift had had another case which was
instantly identifiable.
Not
that I have any choice in the matter, but I'd rather find glandular
fever any day (or night)
5 June 2015 (Friday) - HCPC Newsletter
The HCPC “In Focus” newsletter came out today. Previously I’ve
been rather scathing about the thing.
I’m afraid I’m going to be so again. There was *very* little
of relevance to me. Orthoptists and paramedics subs are due. The Chair of Council
is stepping down. The consultation on the revised Standards of conduct,
performance and ethics continues. The annual subscription is going up by twelve
per cent (which I think is a bit steep!)….
And so it went on. Nothing really noteworthy.
But on the positive side today’s newsletter had a survey
about how they might improve future editions. I said I wanted more information
directly relevant to me and what I do.
Is that so much to ask?
2 June 2015 (Tuesday) - e-learning
Today I did e-learning. The annual review of Anti-D, Good
Manufacturing Practice and Safe Transfusion Practice.
All valuable refreshers, but (at the risk of appearing negative) revising knowledge is rather
dull compared to learning something new…
1 June 2015 (Monday) - Wolff-Parkinson-White Syndrome
Whilst on a day being a clinical chemist we had a sample
with a diagnosis I’ve not seen before.
Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome is a disorder of the
electrical systems of the heart and consequently electrolyte balance is of
prime importance in such a condition.
Apparently the famous singer Meat Loaf suffers from it.
Usually such an admission would breach all sorts of medical confidences… but I
read that on Wiikipedia (so it must be
true!)
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