I started my day by attending a weekly meeting in the Duke OCU building. In the meeting, there were several patients that were discussed and a team in Florida called in as well. After the meeting, I rode over to the Children’s Health Center with Dr. Page to shadow Dr. Martin, one of the attendings. In the clinic, I observed follow up visits for three patients and then learned to read their lab results.
In the afternoon, I headed over to North Pavilion and observed in the Carolina Cord Blood Bank. There, I watched the freezing of cord blood as well as the various tests that the lab did on the blood to make sure it was viable. Similar to the stem cell laboratory, sanitation was very important. Lab coats were a must and shoe covers were also very important. As seen in the picture, all the lab technicians would work at lab stations with hoods to keep the blood sample as clean as possible. Seeing the whole process of the cord blood transplant really allows me to value the work of those that often are not recognized.
