Second-year Medical Lab Technology (MLT) students took a field trip to LifeShare in Shreveport, LA this week. The students were able to learn about the blood donation process from donor requirements to collection. After donating blood, students toured components and hospital services.
They watched as whole blood was processed into packed red blood cells, plasma, and platelets. The products are then labelled and sorted to be packed and shipped to area hospitals. The afternoon was spent the John J Moulds laboratory where difficult and rare antibodies are identified and rare blood sourced for patients in need. It boasts one of the largest rare reference cell collections in the world.
The next stop was the molecular lab where mutations can be detected that serological tests cannot determine. The tour concluded in the newly opened cellular services. These students begin their clinical rotations at area hospitals next Spring and are looking forward to a bright future.
