CSMLS Members to Receive Preferential Treatment at Gala Dinner and Carnival in Kamloops!

 Natalie Marino · September 19th, 2012 · BC

In this day and age it is not politically correct to provide people with preferential treatment, but that is exactly what will happen at the Gala Dinner and Carnival in Kamloops on Friday, September 28.

 

The Gala Dinner and Carnival will be held in conjunction with the BCSLS Annual Congress.

 

The CSMLS has provided funding so that:

• CSMLS members can attend the event at a reduced rate
• CSMLS members will receive a pair of drink tickets
• CSMLS toques are available for CSMLS members
• CSMLS members can compete in a “Best Lab Story Contest” and a Mouth-Pipetting contest for  fabulous prizes (special consideration may be given to those who can hold a lit cigarette while pipetting by mouth)
• Special door prizes

At the Carnival there will also be a photo booth, cotton candy, popcorn and slushies as well as a cake to celebrate the 75^th anniversary of the CSMLS.  Carnival booths include a putting contest, fish pond, balloon darts, bowling, a bean bag toss, and a jelly bean guess and other well-known carnival events.

It’s the event of the year.  Everyone is welcome.  But remember, CSMLS members will receive preferential treatment

A conversation with Amanda Wray – Winner of the trip to LABCON 2012

 Natalie Marino · September 11th, 2012 · BC

Earlier this year we had a contest to pick a BC technologist to go to LABCON2012 in Ottawa.  Our winner was Amanda Wray, a technologist in Port McNeil on Vancouver Island.

How was the trip to Ottawa?

Our trip to Ottawa was uneventful. We were already on vacation in Calgary so the flight out was not an ordeal. I met another technologist on the bus between the airport and the hotel and we spent most of LABCON together. Public transit is a great way to meet new friends!

How did you like LABCON?

It was wonderful to be treated as an equal and great to meet new people on common ground. I really enjoyed being accepted into a community that understands the challenges that laboratory technologists face and meeting people from different work environments with different struggles and hearing the solutions that they have found.

The learning sessions were very interesting and my coworkers enjoyed hearing about what I had learned.

The vendor booths were fun to explore, especially the interactive quizzes. It was neat to see what new technology is available and what is coming up in the future. It is so easy to get trapped inside our own little labs but it is quite refreshing to find out
that there are new and exciting things going on across the country!

Was this your first CSMLS Congress?

Yes. Thank you so much for the opportunity to go. I look forward to attending LABCON 2013 in Victoria! The biggest challenge to attending is the cost associated with travel and accommodation – I will be sure to attend whenever LABCON is near the west
coast!

Is there advice you would give other first time attendees?

I would recommend going with someone you know so that you can discuss the experiences and the learning sessions as they occur; however, meeting people there was quite easy and most attendees were more than willing to discuss whatever topic was on hand!

Were there any sessions that you really enjoyed?

The keynote speaker was amazing and a pleasure to listen to. Lionel Laroche was an engaging and informative presenter with a host of insights that would greatly improve our work environments. It was fascinating to learn how perception can play such a  large role in how we communicate and the enormity of how much culture impacts the way we interact.

The session that I most enjoyed was the Generations 2.0. I work in a lab that includes all of the four working generations and it was intriguing to learn about why we interact the way we do (both at work and at home) and what circumstances have shaped each
different generation. It definitely put some things in perspective! I also enjoyed the session on Innovations in Teaching within a Medical Laboratory Science Program (the introduction of virtual labs is a huge benefit to students!) and Staying Professional in a Social Media World. It is encouraging to see how the laboratory community is embracing technology and using it to the best of our abilities! The sessions on Quality Control were also very helpful and I am interested in pursuing topics such as Lean design in the future.

Outside the conference, were you able to see any of the sights in the capital?

Time was tight, but my husband and I managed to go to the Science and Technology museum in Ottawa the day we left (he enjoyed a couple of days exploring the capital while I was at the conference: War Museum, Natural History Museum, Parliament Buildings). If the plan was to sightsee I definitely would recommend taking an extra couple of days to tour around.

 

Thank you very much for taking the time to answer these questions and we are glad you enjoyed your first LABCON experience!

Great BC Cake Smackdown of 2012

 Colin Semple · June 28th, 2012 · BC

…and the winner is…Karen Beatty of Cumberland BC!

Karen’s entry was three golden cakes covered with buttercream icing. Karen works as a laboratory assistant in the Microbiology/Core Laboratory and thought it was fitting to choose microbiology as a theme. She has also performed phlebotomy for nine years and thought to incorporate blood cells as a decorative element.

The cake took some 20 hours to complete and depicted many elements encountered n a typical day in the lab (specimens, cultures, slides, loops, swabs, red blood cells, platelets, lymphocytes and monocytes) all completely edible, having been created from delicious buttercream icing and fondant. “This was the very first time I have ever used fondant and it was challenging to mold the very small parts.”

Karen brought her cake into work on May 14th. Her co-workers said it was super moist and very delicious. It sure looked tasty.

Congratulations Karen!

The Great BC Cake Smackdown is Here!

 Colin Semple · April 24th, 2012 · BC

You’ve thought about it. You’ve talked about it. Maybe you’ve even did a bit of planning. Starting this week you can please your co-workers, show off your culinary and decorative skills and win an iPad. That’s right an iPad.

The theme for the CSMLS 75th Anniversary is commemorating our historical milestones and achievements. The CSMLS is more than an office. It includes and is inspired by CSMLS members who make important contributions to communities and health care right across the nation. We challenge the BC members to express this theme creatively, in the form of a cake!

To Enter

Make a cake and submit photos demonstrating:
• a laboratory related decoration
• that you made the cake (a photo of you and the cake is sufficient)
Photos should be submitted to bc.csmls75@gmail.com

An application form will then be provided to you to submit descriptions describing:
• your laboratory related decoration or achievement
• your tasty , healthy , or other ingredient related stories (so we can vicariously enjoy too!)
• your laboratory community spirit and sharing the cake with other members

RULES:
• Contestants must be CSMLS members residing in British Columbia
• Contestants must make and decorate their own cakes
• Cakes must be shared with co-workers* between April 23 and June 1, 2012
• Contest entries may be submitted from April 23 to June 1, 2012
• Contestants should submit:
o a picture of contestant with the cake
o two pictures of the actual cake
*If you are an inactive CSMLS member you could take the cake to the laboratory where you used to work. If that is not a possibility, contact us at bc.csmls75@gmail.com .

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