Welcome to the Course!
Welcome to the Laboratory Medicine Course!
In this course, we will be introducing you to the clinical laboratory and providing you with practical exposure to some lab procedures that you will use frequently in your future medical practices. As with most courses, you get out of it in proportion to what you invest in it. You should attend all of the laboratory sessions and read the text. Many of the Course materials will be accessible at the Course website (built in Moodle) and accessible for registered students through myu.umn.edu.
The clinical laboratory plays a central role in modern health care. It has been estimated that at least two-thirds of all diagnoses rely to some extent on a laboratory finding. The clinical laboratories at the University of Minnesota Medical Center, Fairview, cover numerous sub-disciplines including clinical chemistry, microbiology, hematology, coagulation, blood banking, molecular and cytogenetics, and tissue typing. The professional field that is responsible for medical directorship of all of these areas is known as Clinical Pathology (sometimes called Laboratory Medicine or "CP"). In the organization of Pathology, the major fields are Anatomic Pathology ("AP") and Clinical Pathology.
Clinical Pathology at Minnesota
You might have noticed that our department has a double-barreled name, “Laboratory Medicine and Pathology". Originally those were two separate departments, with Laboratory Medicine being an offshoot of Internal Medicine, and one of the first such departments in the country. For the last few decades, these have been a unified department that covers all clinical laboratory testing at this medical center. We also serve as a reference laboratory for numerous physician office and hospital clients both in Minnesota and out-of-state. Our department is a highly rated academic department and our laboratories are known for their excellence. Please feel like you’re a member of our department during your course, and at any time, feel free to contact me or the Course Coordinator, Mary Ramey, with any questions or concerns.
Anthony A. Killeen, MD, PhD, FCAP
Associate Professor
Director of Clinical Pathology
Course Director
X.500: kille001