BY THE WAY... just realized I haven't written a post about my new job! Wouldn't want you all to think I'm just planning on sitting around the apartment for a year. Of course, that would be totally excusable if I had a child to care for... but uhhh... aaah, let's not go down that path today.
So, this new job. I'll be back at the Johns Hopkins Medical Campus in East Baltimore for the year, still working within the JH Cystic Fibrosis Research Development Center, but working for a different lab this time. I'll also be taking on a lot more responsibility than ever before... which is both exciting and terrifying! I'll be one of two "techs" in the lab - the people who not only carry out bench research, but also know where everything is, how all the equipment works, how to troubleshoot and fix the equipment, how to order stuff, etc (basically, they're the people I've always relied on to keep ME straight in the lab).
In addition to my lab responsibilities, I'll also be taking over the Research Coordinator position for a gigantic CF clinical research study called the CF Twin & Sibling Study. The study has gathered blood samples, clinical data, environmental data, family pedigrees, etc from almost 900 families all over the world who have twins or siblings with CF. The goal of the study is to better understand which genetic and environmental factors influence the course and progression of the disease to better predict outcomes and tailor treatments for specific patients. There are over 100 centers recruiting throughout Israel, Australia, Great Britain, and all over the US. That's a lot of data (and a huge database) to keep track of. The woman who is the current coordinator has been with the lab since the beginning of the study and has spent the past 8 years recruiting patients, maintaining contacts and managing data. And now she's handing it all over to me. OH my. There's still a little more recruiting to be done, so I'll be maintaining contact with the active recruitment centers, receiving and cataloging new data, extracting DNA from blood samples, doing some DNA sequencing and analysis, and possibly making some site visits to the active recruitment centers in the future. I'll also be responsible for maintaining the main database, as well as maintaining contact with the recruitment centers and contributing research labs with periodic reports on our progress.
Like I said, I'm a LITTLE terrified about taking on all this responsibility, but I'm also excited to finally have a "big girl" job ;] In my previous research positions, while I've enjoyed the projects I've been given, I haven't truly been challenged. There were times where I had to do some creative troubleshooting and really use my background knowledge to sort out problems with experiments, but I've always felt like I had way too much down-time. While down-time is nice sometimes, too much of it can be de-motivating, and I think that's what has happened to me over the years with research - I just haven't been motivated. I still may find that lab research is not for me in the long run, but I have high hopes that working in a more challenging position with more responsibility and PLENTY to keep me busy will be a much more enjoyable experience. And having the opportunity to continue contributing to CF research is a tremendous blessing - I'm SO thrilled to have found a position like this.
I don't know if I've mentioned this before, but I found out about this position through my friend Liz. She had just graduated from high school this year, and this summer in Dr. Guggino's lab was her first research lab experience. She worked with me all summer and we really had a great time together. Her father, Dr. Garry Cutting, is also a researcher at Hopkins - it's his lab that I'll be working in. This position happened to come up at the same time that I was looking for a job, and he was looking for someone with exactly my qualifications - a strong research background and a medical background, a bachelor's degree but not fresh out of college, and someone who would eventually be moving on to something else. And it happens to be a perfect position from my perspective as well - it's uses my strong research background, keeps me exposed to the clinical side of things, and also gives me the opportunity to explore a side of research (clinical research) that I've never participated in before. I figure while I'm trying to decide what I want to do with my life, I might as well be trying something new! Anyway, talk about something falling straight out of heaven and into your lap... the perfect job, at the perfect time, and working with Liz this summer (before I ever knew I'd be leaving medical school) set me up to find out about the job and have an "in" to interview for it before it was ever posted!
God is good all the time, and all the time GOD IS GOOD!
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