All this sounds like the road the Cytotechs went down a few years
ago....seen their  workload maximums and salaries lately?

Don Hammer, Retired Guy
----- Original Message -----
From: Clarke Ian <clarke.ian@virgin.net>
To: histonet <histonet@pathology.swmed.edu>
Sent: Wednesday, June 14, 2000 2:29 PM
Subject: Re Russ,Ian what's the scoop on Path/UK/DX/errors?


> Hi Sarah ,
>                  Russ And Emma covered most of the points in this case.It
> seems that  there where concerns about this pathologist from about 1995
> onwards where he was a locum at Royal United Bath Hospital .An internal
> audit  was  carried out from 1995 to 1997at which point another consultant
> raised concerns with other hospital trusts and then the GMC where an
> investigation of his locum work in other hospitals was reviewed from march
> 1999.It has taken to this time for the results of the investigation where
> disclosed .Unfortunately the checks on all histopathology was not as
> comprehensive then as it is now.Now a problem with a pathologist would be
> identified as they take part in internal and external audits/Quality
> Assurance schemes and we have to do Accreditation here as well now.
>
> As Russ said there is a shortage of Pathologists so you get employment of
> retired Pathologists a lot of who may not have kept themselves up to date
> with many of the advances in Histopathology/Cytopathology .It is not only
a
> shortage of Pathologists that is the problem here as there is a shortage
of
> histotechs due to the poor pay and working conditions where you are
expected
> to do the work of 2 just to keep up with the work flow.Most biomedical
> Scientists favour clinical chem/haematology due to the high calls which
they
> get.For my sins I enjoy histopath as we in Northern Ireland tend to do the
> bulk of grossing specimens .We don't get the recognition for it as the
Royal
> College of Pathologists and CPA don't accept we can do it.Hopefully things
> will change as some Biomedical Scientists here have been grossing
specimens
> before their Pathologist got out of Med School.
> Anyway thats my pennies worth
>
> Ian Clarke
> Histopathology/Cytopathology Department
> CAH
> UK
>
>
>