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American Society for Clinical Pathology
www.ascp.org
2023
ASCP Summer Fellowship Reviews
Vorapat Vorapanya
As a pathology resident physician and public health graduate in health policy and
management from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, I was delighted to be
the 2023 Carter Stephen Ainsworth Health Policy Summer Fellow at the ASCP Institute
for Science, Technology and Public Policy. This fellowship was the perfect t for me as
I was looking for the opportunity to integrate my background in public health with my
pathology training.
Throughout the program, I had the privilege of collaborating with experts in the eld
including Dr. Ali Brown, Liz Waibel, and ISTP Team, conducting in-depth research from multiple sources, and
analyzing data from the American Board of Pathology and publicly available job postings to gain insights of the
current workforce and market demand of pathologists in the United States. I navigated into the challenges and
opportunities facing pathologists in the United States and barriers preventing US-trained international medical
graduates (IMG) from entering the workforce which led to inevitable workforce exit.
The program provided a platform for me to develop critical thinking skills, enhance my research capabilities,
and deepen my understanding of the current workforce situation and policy-related issues. I was able to
contribute meaningful discussions on strategies to address workforce shortages and probable solutions to
expand the workforce.
Even though the fellowship was oered remotely, and I am in residency training during the fellowship which
made scheduling challenging. Both the ASCP and my residency program were very accommodating which I am
grateful for. I appreciated the mentorship and support I received which not only strengthened my passion for
both public health policy and pathology but also equipped me with practical skills that will be instrumental in
my future career as a pathologist with a strong interest in health policy. I highly recommend this fellowship to
anyone, especially resident pathologists, who also has a passion for health policy.
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American Society for Clinical Pathology
www.ascp.org
2022
ASCP Summer Fellowship Reviews
Haleigh Mauldin
For the summer of 2022, I worked with the American Society for Clinical Pathology’s
Institute of Science, Technology, and Public Policy as one of their Carter Stephen
Ainsworth Health Policy Summer Fellows. I was able to work with ASCP in between
the rst and second year of my MSPH in Health Policy program with Johns Hopkins
Bloomberg School of Public Health. During my rst year of the program, I worked as a
Medical Lab Technician, which is how I learned of ASCP. I was particularly excited about
being accepted into the fellowship because it melded my passion for public health policy
with my background experience in the laboratory.
Throughout the fellowship I worked on a project about student loan forgiveness programs that are available to
laboratory professionals. The purpose was to be able to quantify the loan forgiveness opportunities compared
to other healthcare elds to see if ASCP should explore lobbing for loan forgiveness programs specically for
allied health elds. I was able to research what programs were available at the federal and state levels, compile
the data, and present my ndings and recommendations to members of the Institute. I also was allowed to
participate in meetings that showed the reality of working in the policy sphere and the thought process behind
constructing responses as an organization.
While the fellowship was fully virtual this year, it still proved to be an invaluable experience. I was able to
put into practice things that I had learned throughout my program. It also gave me experience working in a
virtual workplace environment that I hadn’t experienced before, which is incredibly useful considering many
workplaces are fully remote now. Overall, my experience with ASCP was fantastic; everyone was nice and
genuinely excited to have us on board.
Folasade Fashina
This fellowship has been a one-of-a-kind experience. I greatly appreciated the support and
care given by my supervisors, Iman, and Edna as well as the genuine passion exhibited
by the team for the work they do. I can condently say that I am walking away from this
fellowship as a more rened researcher and professional and I hope that I have left ASCP
with something as well. Thank you to everyone I interacted with for being so open and
especially to Matt and the rest of the team for being receptive to my suggestions. I am
forever grateful for this opportunity.
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American Society for Clinical Pathology
www.ascp.org
2021
ASCP Summer Fellowship Reviews
Joel Fuentes
This summer, as the 2021 Carter Stephen Ainsworth Health Policy Fellow at the ASCP
Institute for Science, Technology and Public Policy, I had the distinct privilege of working
with a team of pathologists, public policy experts, and public health professionals to
assess trends in the growth (or lack thereof) of the clinical laboratory workforce. In line
with a groundbreaking clinical laboratory workforce study released by ASCP and the
University of Washington Center for Health Workforce Studies, I worked on four distinct
projects that expanded on the recommendations set forth by the report’s ndings. By
synthesizing IPEDS Data published by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) with data from the
U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (ACS), I was able to create a Diversity Tracker Tool that can
be used to predict trends in diversity for clinical laboratory elds such as Phlebotomy. Additionally, in an eort
to increase the visibility of these clinical roles, I also created a catalog of Student Support Organizations in the
DMV area that would benet from future partnership with ASCP as part of an expansion of the “What’s My
Next?” Initiative. In all, I am proud of my contributions to the incredible work that is being done at ASCP, and I
can’t wait to see how these projects are expanded upon in the years to come.
Although my participation as a member of the Institute for Science, Technology and Public Policy was remote,
I felt as though my input was always welcomed and that my team was always a Zoom call away to oer their
guidance and to share their expertise. Honestly, I can’t think of a more opportune time to have immersed
myself in the eld of Pathology than amidst a global pandemic. I am eternally grateful to the Ainsworth Family
and to the ISTP Team for allowing me this unique opportunity to bolster both my research and writing skills.
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American Society for Clinical Pathology
www.ascp.org
2019
ASCP Summer Fellowship Reviews
Alison Gassett
During the summer of 2019, I worked as one of the Carter Stephen Ainsworth Fellows for
the American Society for Clinical Pathology’s Institute of Science, Technology, and Public
Policy in Washington D.C. I am medical technologist, so I was familiar with some of the
work done by ASCP, however through this experience I learned so much more about the
ways that ASCP is impacting the eld through their research and public policy work.
My main focus during the fellowship was a project assessing the racial and ethnic diversity
of the medical laboratory workforce. First, I conducted research on diversity in other
health care professions and eorts to foster a more inclusive workforce in order to address health disparities
in the United States. Next, I analyzed results from the ASCP 2017 Wage Survey, looking at the diversity of
the workforce in dierent parts of the country, as well as the impact of race on career advancement and
occupation. Finally, I summarized my ndings in a written report, and created graphs and other visuals which
I presented to the D.C. oce sta at the end of the fellowship. I also attended policy briengs on a variety
of topics, both on Capitol Hill and with other organizations. I summarized one of these briengs in the ASCP
ePolicy piece “Rural Health Panel to Examine Workforce, Reimbursement”.
During my visit to D.C. I was also able to explore the city. I visited nearly all of the Smithsonian museums and
many of the monuments and memorials on the National Mall. I was able to celebrate Independence Day by
attending a parade and reworks display. This summer was also the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon
landing, so I was lucky to attend several events in the city celebrating this event.
This fellowship served as my practicum for my Master of Public Health degree and was a great opportunity
to apply the knowledge I had gained during my program. I was able to improve my research, writing and data
analysis skills. The fellowship was very organized, which helped me stay on top of weekly deadlines. I was given
a lot of independence to decide how I would complete my project, but sta were always available when I had
questions. Everyone in the oce was very welcoming and went out of their way to explain their many ongoing
projects so I could learn more about the organization. I feel like they really valued my experience as a medical
technologist and it was encouraging to see people so passionate about improving the eld.
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American Society for Clinical Pathology
www.ascp.org
2019
ASCP Summer Fellowship Reviews
Anna Kemmerer
My name is Anna Kemmerer and I am an undergraduate student at Georgetown
University studying Healthcare Management and Policy with a minor in Psychology. This
past summer, I worked on a laboratory personnel recruitment project for the Science,
Technology and Public Policy branch of the American Society of Clinical Pathology.
I researched the higher education necessary for laboratory professionals to raise
awareness and provide resources for high school and collegiate students interested in the
eld. To furthera encourage students, I curated a list of scholarships and grants available
for students interested in this career path. Lastly, I established a connection with schools in the DMV by creating
a contact database of high schools and colleges within the area. On the side of performing research for my
project, I attended various policy briengs held by institutions such as the Pew Charitable Trusts, the National
Academy of Sciences and the Bipartisan policy institute to write articles for ASCP’s ePolicy monthly newsletter.
My experience at ASCP was wonderful; I enjoyed working with a small team and the location of the oce. My
one suggestion for future fellows would be to involve students in a greater number of side projects to expose
them to various career roles. I really enjoyed attending the health policy events which allowed me to explore
many dierent careers in the healthcare eld. I think the number of events attended could be increased or
involving the fellow in smaller side projects around the oce.
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American Society for Clinical Pathology
www.ascp.org
2018
ASCP Summer Fellowship Reviews
Deanna Giraldi
This summer, I worked as the Carter Stephen Ainsworth Fellow for the American Society
for Clinical Pathology’s Institute of Science, Technology, and Public Policy in Washington,
D.C. Each week, I spent four days researching and writing in my ASCP oce and one
day at a conference or hearing in D.C. My specic role involved conducting research,
crafting recommendations and other educational resources on a variety of issues,
attending briengs on Capitol Hill, and providing support for ongoing programs. I had the
opportunity to write an ePolicy brief entitled, “VHA Subcommittee Endorses Additional
Pharmacological Testing,” which has since been published in ASCP’s July 2018 ePolicy edition. In addition to this
ePolicy piece, I also was able to publish a paper with my colleagues on healthcare disparaties across the United
States entitled, “Disparities in Rural Health Care: A Look at the Field of Laboratory Medicine.”
In addition to my work as a Fellow, I created a “D.C. intern bucket list,” with the goal of exploring Washington,
D.C. and delving into the neighborhoods surrounding me. I visited 12 museums, including the National Portrait
Gallery, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, and the National Museum of African American Culture
and History. I also visited eight memorials including the FDR, MLK, Korean War, World War II, Lincoln, and
Jeerson monuments. I went to a Washington Nationals baseball game, attended a Fall Out Boy concert, and
was in the city during the Capitols’ Stanley Cup victory. I attended the “Stop Family Separation” rally in Lafayette
Square in front of the White House, in which thousands gathered to denounce the atrocities occurring on the
border. During this protest, Lin Manuel Miranda, the creator of Hamilton, America Ferrera, and Alicia Keys each
spoke about the importance of keeping families together.
This fellowship presented me with an opportunity to gain hands-on experience and insight into the
intersections of science, policy, and practice in laboratory medicine, while building and strengthening
professional skills, particularly in research and analysis. As a Fellow, I was aorded numerous opportunities,
including working alongside the most supportive coworkers, building on prior knowledge while learning new
subject matter every day, and exploring the city.
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American Society for Clinical Pathology
www.ascp.org
2018
ASCP Summer Fellowship Reviews
Mollie Davidson
As I entered into this summer, I was faced with the excitement of moving to a big city and
starting a new fellowship; however, I was fairly unsure of what to expect. In the past, I
lived in the fairly small towns of Clemson and Summerville, South Carolina, so this would
be a large change for me. I had primarily a science background, meaning that this position
would require me to work slightly out of my comfort zone.
In the beginning of June, I moved into GWU housing with strangers I would soon call
friends and started my fellowship at ASCP. Immediately, everyone in the oce kindly
greeted me and provided the other Fellow and me with the chance to get to know everyone in the oce. That
same day, I received my projects that I would be expected to work on and complete throughout the summer.
The two projects I received focused on the impact of the opioid epidemic on pathologists and laboratory
professionals, as well as a study examining the laboratory workforce trends from 1960 through present day.
Each project required detailed research of various topics and analyzing the information. My research generally
entailed online research of published articles, but I also received the opportunity to visit and pull articles from
various archives in the National Library of Medicine. While I allocated time to each project to meet weekly
deadlines and organizing my collected research in a form to report to other sta, I quickly realized it would
demand variations in my normal researching techniques. Throughout the summer, I continued to collect
information, outline trends, and draw conclusions from my research.
My project on the impact of the opioid epidemic on pathologists and laboratory professionals was especially
interesting, as I’ve previously been employed at a pharmacy and I aspire to become a physician. The research
I completed revealed the need for a larger workforce and funding needs for pathologists and laboratory
professionals. The data demonstrated that eorts toward the epidemic have had an eect; however, continued
future eorts will be needed. The ndings from the laboratory workforce study presented evidence that the
workforce has been struggling with similar challenges throughout the previous six decades; and there need to
be eorts toward creating a practical solution that will actually provide meaningful results.
The two months I spent in D.C. were lled with new food nds, adventures through the city, and the visits
to historical museums. From the moment I arrived, until the day I left, I found myself admiring impressive
architecture and discovering monuments and memorials I had never seen before. The activities and sightseeing
opportunities in D.C. are endless, making the summer pass in the blink of an eye.
I sincerely appreciate my time spent at ASCP. I cannot express how helpful and kind the sta was throughout the
summer. Their feedback allowed me to grow personally and improve my skill set. Every person in the oce gave
me the impression that they would go out of their way to not only assist me with my projects at ASCP, but also
do their best to help me excel in the future. I learned a great deal about health policy, the laboratory profession,
and professional style writing. I felt as though my work was meaningful, and I could collaborate with the team at
ASCP while also having the chance to work independently. The opportunities provided by this fellowship were
unlike others I have experienced, and I believe that my time spent at ASCP will be impactful on my future path. My
experience there has been invaluable, and I truly enjoyed getting to know Je, Matt, Edna, Iman, and Raven. I can
only speak highly of this organization and the people I had the privilege of meeting. My only suggestion for the
future would be to publicize the fellowship to a greater extent and potentially move up the notication of decision
date, as it takes time to arrange housing and nances.
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American Society for Clinical Pathology
www.ascp.org
2018
ASCP Summer Fellowship Reviews
Benjamin Harper
The internship at the American Society for Clinical Pathology’s Institute for
Science, Technology and Public Policy gave me an incredible professional
and exciting experience in policy and research. I interned at ASCP from
June 2017 to May 2018 and included my internship experience as a
capstone for graduation from the University of Maryland, College Park.
I entered the internship with goals of improving data analysis skills and
professional writing, creating surveys, and strengthening my abilities as a
public health researcher. I met these goals by working on projects closely
with my preceptor and the sta at ASCP on their Choosing Wisely initiative, policy action alerts, and reporting
on briengs and conferences on a broad range of topics in health policy and technology impacting patient
outcomes.
I enjoyed getting a vast amount of experience in health policy from a new perspective. Coming from a
background in community health without much laboratory experience, I was able to learn a great amount of
information and combine it with my academics. The most helpful thing from my internship at ASCP was being
able to conduct a study on access to medical laboratory services in Indian Health Service regions. Developing
a research protocol, questionnaires, and interacting with the Institutional Review Board are all steps to
developing important transferrable professional skills further in a career in the public health community. I
would recommend interns take this opportunity to investigate a gap in research important to them and the
laboratory community using the opportunities provided by ASCP.
