BloodTechNet Announces Judging Panel for the Learning Competition
January 26, 2011 — Today BloodTechNet announced an esteemed group of judges who will review and score ideas submitted in Round 1 of the Learning Competition. Now in its second week, the Learning Competition seeks to empower medical laboratory technologists to pursue their unique learning needs in transfusion science as they see appropriate.
The competition offers an opportunity for educators, innovators and designers to submit ideas. The top applicants as chosen by our judges will be invited to Round 2 and submit the details of their project. Medical Laboratory Technologists will review all of the finalist project details, and make the tough decision of determining which ideas will get funding by casting their votes. Winners will be announced at the Canadian Society for Transfusion Medicine Conference in Toronto in May 2011.
Each of the judges brings a unique perspective to the evaluation process and will help ensure the best ideas receive the funding they deserve. The judging panel includes:
— Mary Bedard, The McCausland Hospital — Mary is a laboratory manager at The McCaulsand Hospital in Terrace Bay. She has dedicated her career exclusively in northwestern Ontario, where she has particiatped in continuing education and teaching lab practices to co-op students, lab assistants, nurses and training fellow MLTs.
— Kieran Biggins, Alberta Health Services South Zone — Kieran is the Transfusion Safety an Quality Assurance Coordinator for the Alberta South Zone that includes both Lethbridge and Medicine Hat. He is currently the President of the Canadian Society for Transfusion Medicine (CSTM).
— Marilyn Collins, Newfoundland and Labrador Provincial Blood Coordinating Program Office — Marilyn is the Program manager for the Newfoundland and Labrador Provincial Blood Coordinating Program Office. A long time advocate for MLTs in transfusion science, she received the Blum Award in 2008 in recognition of her service to the CSTM.
— Ahmed Coovadia, Canadian Blood Services — Ahmed is a Hospital Laision Specialist for Central Ontario Region. His distinguished career includes appointments as the President of the Canadian Society for Transfusion Medicine, and a standards committee member for CSTM standards.
— Cheryl Doncaster, National Advisory Committee on Blood and Blood Products — Cheryl is a Policy Analyst and Project Coordinator with the National Advisory Committee on Blood and Blood Products. She received the 2006 Honours Award for Excellence in Customer Service for Atlantic Canada for here commitment to customer service.
— Darryl Guthro, Providence Health Care — Daryl is the Technical Leader for the Transfusion Medicine Laboratory of Providence Health Care in Vancouver. He has worked with the BC Blood Coordinating Office on various projects, and is a standards committee member for CSTM standards.
— Lynn Johnson, Canadian Society for Training and Development — Lynn is the current President of the Canadian Society for Training and Development, the professional association for the workplace learning and performance community in Canada. She has been involved in adult education since 1986, both as a learning designer and manager of training projects.
— Brian Lamb, The University of British Columbia's Centre for Teaching, Learning and Technology — Brian is a Teaching and Learning Strategist for the Centre for Teaching, Learning and Technology. He also co-teaches a course on "Text Technologies: The Changing Spaces of Reading and Writing" for UBC's Master of Educational Technology program. He’s been a Research Fellow at Utah State University’s Center for Open and Sustainable Learning (COSL), and a Visiting Researcher at Barcelona’s Open University of Catalonia.
— Cathy Lee, Vancouver Island Health Authority — Cathy is the Technical Coordinator of Transfusion Medicine Laboratories at VIHA. Her all consuming interest in continuing education began with a goal to obtain her A.R.T. (which she did), and manifested itself in positions such as Education Coordinator for Canadian Red Cross Blood Services.
— Mary Sue Lessard, St. Joseph's General Hospital — Mary is the laboratory manager at St. Joseph’s General Hospital in Elliot Lake, inorthern Ontario. Her career includes 31 years as a technologist rotating through Bacteriology, Chemistry, Hematology and Transfusion Medicine.
— Mary Myers, Learning Consultant — Mary has over 12 years experience in designing and implementing blended training and development initiatives to match corporate or organizational strategies. Her instructional design experience touches many different sectors, including retail, technology, financial services, life sciences and public sectors.
— Christine Nielsen, Canadian Society for Medical Laboratory Science — Christine Nielsen is the Executive Director of the Canadian Society for Medical Laboratory Science. Previous positions include the Director of Certification for the CSMLS and Associate Registrar and Member Relations Team Leader at the College of Medical Laboratory Technologists of Ontario (CMLTO).
— Wendy Owens, Ontario Regional Blood Coordinating Network — Wendy is the Regional Coordinator of the Ontario Regional Blood Coordinating Network (ORBCoN), Northern and Eastern Region. She has been involved in the field of Transfusion Medician for more than 25 years in both a hospital transfusion service and as Laboratory Manager at a Canadian Blood Services Production Site.
— Anne Marie Robinson, Horizon Health Nework — Anne is the Manager of the Transfusion Medicine laboratory of Horizon Health Network, Moncton Zone. In 2005 she completed a project for the New Brunswick Department of Health to assist the laboratories in the province implement the changes required by the CSA Z902 standards for Blood Transfusion laboratories.
— Paulette Van Vliet, Regina Qu'Appelle Health Region — Paulette is an MLT at the Regina Qu'Appelle Health Region in Regina. She has her A.R.T. in Transfusion Medicine, and has been a council member of the Saskatchewan society of Medical Laboratory Technologiest for the past three years.
— Colleen Young, Canadian Blood Services — Colleen is the Hospital Liaison Specialist for Canadian Blood Services in Alberta and the Northwest Territories. In this position, Colleen has been able to combine her love for transfusion medicine with her wanderlust and the opportunity to collaborate with an enormous variety of exceptional people.
Transfusion community leaders across Canada are encouraged to visit BloodTechNet on Facebook for more information as well as www.bloodtechnet.ca to submit their ideas and cast their votes. Idea submissions will be accepted until February 7, 2011, and applicants advancing to Round 2 will be announced the first week of March.
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BloodTechNet is a not-for-profit learning network for medical laboratory technologists interested in Transfusion Science. The Learning Competition is our way of supporting the transfusion community. It is administered by Canadian Blood Services, with unrestricted funding provided by Talecris Biotherapeutics.