This year April 19-25 is Medical Laboratory Professionals Week, an annual celebration of medical lab professionals and pathologists who play a vital role in health care and patient advocacy led by the American Society for Clinical Pathology. This week’s theme is Lab Story: To Infinity and Beyond for our Patients!
UAB Medicine has more than 37 independent laboratories with over 550 personnel performing over 10 million tests and procedures per year. Each laboratory partners closely with respective medical leaders within the Department of Pathology to ensure quality outcomes.
"I am deeply thankful for the support, teamwork, and collaboration within our clinical labs," said Cristina Magi-Galluzzi, M.D., Ph.D., Robert and Ruth Anderson Endowed Chair in Pathology. "Happy Lab Week 2026!"
Throughout 2026’s Medical Laboratory Professionals Week, several seminars were offered for lab professionals to attend. A few of the presenting speakers are from the UAB Department of Pathology. Liyun Cao, Ph.D., presented "The Bicarb Mystery: Following the Clues to Unexpected Results" and Ken Waites, M.D., presented "Clinical Significance and Laboratory Diagnosis of Mycoplasma and Ureaplasma Infections in Women and Their Neonates" on Monday, April 20. Alexander "Craig" Mackinnon, M.D., Ph.D., presented "Evaluation of the Clinical Utility of Whole Exome Sequencing Compared to Targeted NGS Panels", Brandi McCleskey, M.D., and Greg Davis, M.D., presented "Cultivating the Pathology and Laboratory Medicine Workforce with ASCP", and Cristina Magi-Galluzzi, M.D., Ph.D., presented "Scanning the Future: Digital Pathology in Practice" on Thursday, April 22. Karen Scott, Ph.D., presented "The Joys & Agonies of Pain Management Patient Testing" on Friday, April 23.
The Department of Pathology is grateful to all the UAB laboratory staff for the integral role they play and their hard work and dedication to the field and to UAB.