CRB Newsletter - Vol. 4, No. 2

Newsletter

Special Interest Group of the American Association of Bioanalysts (AAB)
906 Olive Street, Suite 1200, Saint Louis, MO 63101-1448
Phone: (314)241-1445 • Fax: (314)241-1449 Email: crb-aab@aab.org • Website: www.aab.org

Stan Harris, 
ELD/TS(ABB)

Welcome once again to the newest edition of the CRB Newsletter!  (Articles appear in the box at the right.) Summer has slipped by and our attention has turned towards school, county fairs, and for many of us, the changing colors of fall foliage.   The committees that run the CRB during the year are a bit deciduous in their own right; being reborn each spring, then working hard throughout the year in an effort to inform, educate, and advocate for our interests, all culminating in the fanfare we know as the AAB/CRB Annual Meeting.  So read on friends as I know there are many exciting things to look forward to in the coming months for CRB members.

If you weren’t fortunate enough to attend the 2014 AAB/CRB educational meeting in May, you might want to skip ahead to avoid the distraught feelings one gets when they realize they quit the slot machine one pull too early, because last year was definitely a jackpot.  The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive.  Overall the meeting and venue were a big hit with tremendous speakers, topics, and a timely workshop on embryo biopsy.  Take a bow Dr. Dow and committee for a job well done.  Not only was the content well thought out, but the venue produced at least one reported celebrity sighting according to my Facebook feed (apparently Nicholas Cage hasn’t left Las Vegas after all…).  For more on the 2014 meeting, see the article presented by Mark Dow, PhD, HCLD(ABB). 

Suffice it to say 2015 has some big shoes to fill.  Our upcoming annual CRB educational meeting will be chaired by Marina Gvakharia, MD, PhD, HCLD/ELD(ABB), MT(AAB).  Marina and her committee are putting together an exciting and timely program, including a workshop using these newfangled contraptions called “time-lapse microscopes.”  There’s even promise of all kinds of hands-on time with the equipment.  The lecture series will be presented by A-listers right out of Hollywood, including a provocative Keynote topic.  The meeting will again be held at the beautiful Red Rock Resort, Las Vegas, in May 2015. Check out all the amenities and local activities at Red Rock.  If you want to get excited about a meeting, just check out Marina’s report in this newsletter about the speakers and topics.

I am very pleased to introduce Shane Zozula, TS(ABB), as the chair of the legislative committee.  Shane embodies the spirit we need in a committee that is charged with the surveillance and dissection of the rules and movements that are capable of having such a profound effect on our industry, both good and bad.  Shane is a “can do” kind of guy, and I am glad to have him and the LegCom on board.  Please visit his article to learn more about the LegCom effort and how you can assist.

Gerry Celia, PhD, HCLD/TS(ABB), is once again the chair of our credentialing committee and is a resource for members wishing to participate in growing the reputation of our profession.  The best way to be an ambassador for ART is to become certified and to promote certification in the area of expertise each of us might have.  The AAB has medical technologist certifications focused on embryology and andrology, which have been somewhat under-utilized.  Let’s turn that around.  Another very easy way to strut your stuff is by contributing directly to the certification process.  The CRB is asking all members to participate in question-writing efforts for the ABB board examinations.  It’s easy, template driven, and is a perfect opportunity to improve each of the ABB examinations.  Visit Gerry’s article to learn more.   

The standing rules committee is working to prepare CRB Standing Rules and SOPs for publication on our website.  Dave Walker, ELD/TS(ABB), and the entire executive board of CRB will continue to work on designing some best practices reports as reference materials.  These will be available on the CRB website as well.  The CRB website is a dynamic site and we welcome all suggestions to improve the site for you, our members.   The Publications Committee, chaired by yours truly, will continue to look into social media including Twitter, Facebook, blogs, and forums.  Carli Chapman, ELD/TS(ABB), spearheaded this discussion last year and it remains a focal point.  Please take a look at Carli’s article to get an idea of the direction we are taking over the next year.  We also ask that you contact the AAB Office with your suggestions at aab@aab.org. 

Reminder alerts!!  Reproductive BioMedicine Online (RBM Online) is still available to members in good standing for the (amazing) price of $80.00 US.  This is a quality publication that our members should take advantage of.

As always, we value member participation in our numerous committees, and you can volunteer by contacting our current president, Carli Chapman, ELD/TS(ABB)

I hope you’ll find the content of the newsletter interesting and of value.  If there are things you feel would improve the experience, please drop me a line at Stanley.harris@nmhs.org, and I will share it with the PubCom. 

Stanley G. Harris, BS, TS/ELD(ABB)
Editor