Re: [Histonet] Start up Vet/Animal histology laboratory

2016-07-10 Thread E . Wayne Johnson　朱稳森博士 via Histonet 

We have our own lab in Beijing and we do both of those things.

We have a consulting veterinary practice and the main purpose of the lab 
is to support that veterinary practice.  It would be unusual in the USA 
to have histopath in a vet lab but in China there was no diagnostic 
laboratory that did any histopathology at all.  We have some cooperation 
with a university and we get some research samples from them.


We had some difficulty procuring reagents at first.

Fixed samples from the field or from researchers are often in horrible 
shape.


It really is a disaster when samples from expensive and difficult to set 
up research are ruined by inept collection and poor fixation...


We are primarily interested in pigs but we get research samples from 
mice and chickens sometimes.


If there is a good liaison with the researchers it works well.

I have a team of people who know how to select and necropsy pigs for 
diagnosis and they can do a good job.  We made a video to show people in 
the field how to collect and manage diagnostic samples.


I knew that personnel was difficult.  If you hire and train young men, 
they will leave and go work for someone else after they think they know 
what they are doing.  If hire young women, they will get married and 
have babies and can cause many problems.  I am tired of hiring people 
with advanced degrees (MS, PhD).  They tend to be lazy and are rather 
hard to train.  Bright young folk who have the willingness to learn are 
a joy.  The surprising thing about a MS or PhD is what it ain't.


In the future I am considering hiring taxi cab drivers for everything. 
They are smart.  They are ambitious.  They know how to take directions. 
They are self-starters and independent workers.


On 07/10/2016 07:53 AM, Linda wrote:

  Hello Histoland,
I am inquiring if anyone has started their own lab to do histology services for 
veterinarians or animal research tissues?
Or anyone who has started a private lab?
What are your experiences?  What didn't you expect?
Thank you in advance.
Regards,
Linda Dee, BGS,HT(ASCP) lmd...@yahoo.com





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Re: [Histonet] Start up Vet/Animal histology laboratory

2016-07-10 Thread Va Paula Sicurello via Histonet 
Hi Linda,
I've set up three histology labs for animal research: one in an academic 
setting, one for a pharmaceutical firm, and one for a research foundation.  
1. Having money to buy the proper equipment is tricky, start with used 
equipment and make due until you can afford to buy new.  As long as you buy the 
equipment from somewhere that       either provides a warranty or the equipment 
is so inexpensive that you don't care if it breaks (as long as it gets you 
going).
2. Having the investors (or whom ever is supplying the majority of the funding) 
understand that often times histology labs that are providing a service to 
researchers do not make money.         In the early stages they are black pits 
you pour money into.
3. Building up a clientele requires a lot of advertising and offering low 
prices (undercutting the competition even if it means you suffer a loss).
4. Have a method of billing, invoicing, and collecting on those invoices can be 
a challenge.  Simple bookkeeping software like Quickbooks or FileMaker will 
help you considerably.  
5. Write your SOPs as soon as you can.  Having the methodology of every 
technique, stain and procedure you will be doing is invaluable.  When you get 
around to be able to hire staff           these will be a lifesaver.  Having 
established SOPs allow you to make sure your staff also follow the same 
procedure.  Reproducability and consistency is a must when establishing a       
  histology lab.  There is no shame in borrowing heavily from SOPs you have 
come across in the past.  Rely on colleagues to provide SOPs and pointers.
6.  Make sure that the place you select for the business allows for proper 
ventilation of all the reagents and chemicals.  You want to limit your exposure 
to the chemicals in the lab to the          maximum point possible.  Safety 
should be of the utmost importance in the new lab.
Those are just a few things I can think of.  Most important is to enjoy the 
ride-it's going to be hard and sometimes frustrating work-but building the 
business is part of the fun. Sincerely,
Paula
Paula SicurelloHistotechnology SpecialistUC San Diego Health
 

On Saturday, July 9, 2016 5:08 PM, Linda via Histonet 
 wrote:
 

  Hello Histoland,
I am inquiring if anyone has started their own lab to do histology services for 
veterinarians or animal research tissues?
Or anyone who has started a private lab?
What are your experiences?  What didn't you expect?  
Thank you in advance.
Regards,
Linda Dee, BGS,HT(ASCP) lmd...@yahoo.com

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