Martha Ward writes:

Speaking as a med tech who has taken and passed the QIHC it's my opinion that
the person should learn to cut, as well as stain, their own slides.  However, I
do realize that at some institutions the IHC lab receives pre-cut slides so that
they would not always have the opportunity to learn microtomy (which I believe
is as much an art as a skill).  I have great admiration for those who do did
really well!

Patti Loykasek wrote:

> I probably should have given a bit more background on the question about
> cutting your own sections. I am working with mainly med techs who are doing
> IHC. A couple of them were asking me about taking the QIHC. When I looked at
> the ASCP web site, I saw that the QIHC is open to med techs. I wasn't sure
> about the cutting sections. When I took the QIHC I cut my own, but I'm an
> HTL. I guess if the med techs want to take it, I need to teach them to cut.
> It does raise an interesting question: if the QIHC is open to other
> disciplines, should microtomy be required? I see both sides of the issue.
>
> Thanks to everyone for their response.
>
> Patti Loykasek
> Phenopath Laboratories
> Seattle, WA