This year April 14-20 is Medical Laboratory Professionals Week, an annual celebration of medical laboratory 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 Barbie: The Lab is Everything.

Janie Roberson, senior director of Anatomic Pathology, Laboratory Quality, and the Cellular Therapy Laboratory, is being celebrated this week in a timely fashion for her nearly 46 years at UAB.

Roberson says much of her job satisfaction is linked to the lab advancements she’s witnessed during her career. “UAB labs are early adopters of new technologies, so there is always something new to learn,” she said. “I credit the progressive change and wide-ranging opportunities UAB provides for keeping my passion for work alive and sustaining a rich and satisfying career.”

Throughout 2024’s Medical Laboratory Professionals Week, several seminars are being offered for lab professionals to attend. A few of the presenting speakers include the following faculty from the Department of Pathology: Chad Siniard, M.D., John Choi, M.D., Ph.D., Karen Scott, Ph.D., and Ken Waites, M.D., and range in topic areas from advancing respiratory diagnostics to the ever-changing world of forensic toxicology, and many more.

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.