Code of Conduct

The American Society for Clinical Laboratory Science (ASCLS) is committed to creating virtual and face-to-face meeting environments that is inclusive to the largest number of contributors, with the most varied and diverse backgrounds possible. As such, the Society will provide a friendly, safe and welcoming environment for all that is inclusive and free from discrimination, regardless of race, religion, color, national origin, sexual orientation, gender expression or identity, transgender status, age, disability, veteran or marital status, or any other protected categories under applicable law.
“Participant” in this policy refers to anyone present at an ASCLS event, including staff, contractors, vendors, exhibitors, sponsors, venue staff, members, and all attendees. This policy includes all events, including ancillary events, official and unofficial social gatherings, and interactions online and on social media. Event venues may be shared with members of the public; please be respectful to all patrons of these locations. All participants must abide by the following policy:

Expected Behavior

  • Be considerate of those around you.
  • Be respectful of others and viewpoints that may be different from your own.
  • Be mindful of your words and actions.

Unacceptable Behavior

Unacceptable behaviors may include, but are not limited to:
  • Visual harassment, such as sexual images or sexual language, including presentations and slide decks.
  • Intimidating, harassing, abusive, discriminatory, derogatory or demeaning speech or actions by any participant, including online communications, carried out in the context of an ASCLS event or auxiliary events.
  • Harmful or prejudicial verbal or written comments or visual images related to gender, sexual orientation, race, religion, disability, age, appearance, or any other personal characteristic;
  • Inappropriate or gratuitous use of nudity, sexual images, or stereotyped images in public spaces (including presentation slides).
  • Deliberate intimidation, stalking or following a person online.
  • Harassing photography or recording.
  • Sustained disruption of talks or other events.
  • Unwelcome and uninvited attention or contact in person or online, including unwelcome touching or groping.
  • Real or implied threat of physical harm or of professional or financial damage or harm.
  • Any other illegal activity not already covered above.

Consequences of Unacceptable Behavior

Unacceptable behavior will not be tolerated and could result in debarment from current, and/or any future ASCLS events. If a participant is found to be engaging in unacceptable behavior, ASCLS reserves the right to take any and all actions it solely deems appropriate, up to and including expulsion from the event without warning or refund. If appropriate, local law enforcement may be engaged.

Reporting

Anyone subject to witness to someone else being subjected to behavior that violates this Code of Conduct may report their concerns to any member of the ASCLS Staff or ASCLS elected Officer. All complaints will be treated seriously and responded to promptly. All reports are kept confidential to the extent possible. Staff and Officers will take steps to assist the targets and witnesses of Code of Conduct violations to feel safe for the duration of the event. These may include providing an escort, finding accommodation at a different hotel, or changing travel plans. Staff will NOT contact venue security or local law enforcement unless requested to do so by the target of the Code of Conduct violation or if the conduct is illegal per se.

Appeals and Due Process

Participants accused of violating this Code of Conduct may appeal the application of any consequences to the ASCLS Board of Directors via notification to the ASCLS President. Where appropriate, the ASCLS President may engage the ASCLS Judicial Committee. Grievances will be handled in accordance with current ASCLS policies

ASCLS Calendar

Check out upcoming ASCLS events here: https://connect.ascls.org/events/calendar

Free Sponsored Webcast

Utilizing Chromogenic Media in the Microbiology Laboratory to Address Current Healthcare Challenges - 2018 Update

Free Webcast - Thursday September 6, 2018 at 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time

Microbiology laboratories are under continuous pressure to be more efficient. One of the highest volume specimen types received in microbiology is the urine culture.  Urine cultures are a significant burden on microbiology laboratories for labor, media and reagent costs.

Rambach introduced chromogenic agar in 1979 for clinical microbiology laboratories. These media incorporate chromogenic substrates that release differently colored compounds when degraded by microbial specific enzymes. Thus, organisms can be identified by the presence of specifically colored colonies on different nutrient agar plates.

At the end of this Webinar the participant will be able to::

  • Discuss the principles of chromogenic agar reactions, 
  • Explain the applications of chromogenic media with different specimen types
  • Provide an overview of the literature supporting the use of chromogenic media
  • Identify lab protocols that may improve the efficiency of urine culture performance including the reflex urine culture and the use of BD BBL™ CHROMagar™  Orientation media

This free webinar will take place on Thursday, September 6, 2018 at 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time. Registration is limited and on a first come first served basis. Pre-registration is encouraged.

Registration requires either a paid ASCLS membership account or a free Customer account in the ASCLS system. If you do not have one, you will be prompted to create an account. Please choose either Customer or the membership type you would like.

Webcast Presenters

Margie Morgan, PhD

Margie Morgan, PhD

Margie Morgan, PhD
Scientific Director Professor Pathology and Laboratory Medicine 
Cedars-Sinai Medical Center

Dr. Morgan has over 30 years of laboratory experience first as a bench technologist and then laboratory director.Her professional focus has been on rapid technologies for identification of blood culture pathogens, Clostridium difficile diagnostic strategies, and infection control methods and application of molecular methods to the microbiology laboratory. These interests have led to over 100 abstracts and publications. 

Dr. Morgan earned her BS in Medical Technology at the University of Oklahoma, and her PhD in Medical Microbiology and Immunology at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Campus.She obtained a Fellowship in Clinical Microbiology at the Mayo Clinic (Rochester, MN).She is certified by the American Board of Medical Microbiology.

She has been twice awarded the Golden Apple Award for teaching Medical students, Pathology residents and Infectious Disease Fellows at Cedars-Sinai medical center.She has spoken at numerous regional and national meetings, she is the past president of her local ASM chapter (SCASM), and hosts a microbiology blog on the internet for the review of microbiology, “Microbes with Dr. Morgan”. 

Dr. Morgan has been the Scientific Director of the Microbiology Laboratory in the Division of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center for 30 years.

Patrick R Murray, PhD

Patrick R Murray, PhD
Sr. Director WW Scientific Affairs 
BD Life Sciences

Dr. Patrick R. Murray received his Ph.D. degree in Microbiology at UCLA, postgraduate training in Clinical Microbiology at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester MN, and was director of the Clinical Microbiology Laboratories at Barnes Hospital and Washington University from 1976-1999. 

In 2001 he accepted the position of Senior Scientist and Chief of Microbiology at the National Institutes of Health. In July 2011 he accepted his current position at BD Diagnostics as Worldwide Senior Director of Scientific Affairs. He is the former Editor-in-Chief of the ASM Manual of Clinical Microbiology and serves on numerous editorial boards. He has authored more than 275 research articles and 20 books. 

He is the recipient of numerous awards including the ASM Becton Dickinson Award for Research in Clinical Microbiology (1993), ASM BioMerieux-Sonnenwirth Award for Leadership in Clinical Microbiology (2002), ASM Founders Distinguished Service Award (2010), and ABMM/ABMLI Professional Recognition Award (2011), as well as the Pasteur Award (Illinois Branch of ASM, 2007), NIH Clinical Center Director's Awards for Patient Care (2006) and Research (2010), and NIH Director's Award for Research (2007).

This webinar is sponsored and hosted by BD Life Sciences – Diagnostic Systems.

BD

BD is approved as a provider of continuing education programs in the clinical laboratory sciences by the ASCLS P.A.C.E. ® Program.

P.A.C.E. ® Credit

Participants will be awarded 1 hour of P.A.C.E. credit. The level of instruction is Intermediate. ASCLS P.A.C.E.® is accepted by the ASCP/ASCLS/AGT Board of Certification and all states, including Florida and California, as an approved provider of continuing education for recertification and licensure. 

Sign Up for the Free Webinar