We Are IH: Castlegar medical lab technologist a lifelong learner

April 6, 2023

Stephanie snowshoeing at Nancy Greene Lake in West Kootenay.

Name: Stephanie Rodgers (she/her/hers)
Job Title: Interim Director Laboratory Quality, Safety and Innovation
Years of Service: 16
Worksite: Kootenay Boundary Regional Hospital
Community: Castlegar
Ancestral Territory: Sinixt
Advice to live by: I live by my Rodgers family rules: be kind, have patience, show respect, forgive and forget, eat healthy, go outside, and love one another.

Congratulations to Stephanie Rodgers, a medical laboratory technologist (MLT) who was appointed to the role of interim director, laboratory quality, safety and innovation!

Stephanie was born in Vancouver and raised in Richmond, B.C. She’s lived in Castlegar since 2007, located on the Sinixt Nation territory.

Stephanie considers herself approachable, knowledgeable and compassionate.

“I take pride in my work; I have a strong work ethic. I am dedicated to lifelong learning and want to learn as much as I can about the world we live in.”

In this Story…

Learn more about her journey with IH

Explore medical lab Careers@IH

Learn more about her journey with IH

Having always had a fascination with microbiology, Stephanie decided early on in life that she wanted to work in health care.

“When I learned about the medical lab program at BCIT years ago, I knew I had to become a medical laboratory technologist. I have worked most of my career in the microbiology department. Being able to combine microbiology with a passion for helping others was a win-win for me! Each day is different, challenging and overall rewarding.”

-- Stephanie Rodgers (she/her/hers)

In 2015, Stephanie was involved in a quality improvement project that changed how orthopedic tissue samples were processed and handled in the microbiology lab at Kootenay Boundary Regional Hospital. Over a two-year period, the team was able to reduce the contamination rate significantly, which in turn reduces the potential of patients being on antibiotics unnecessarily.

In April 2021, Stephanie moved into a position as a regional lab quality coordinator. In this role, Stephanie’s tasks varied from day to day: writing and revising procedures; supporting staff with lab safety and biosafety education; and working on projects that help improve lab services or how the frontline staff perform their work.

Hiking woman wearing blue t-shirt and ball cap, stepping into water at edge of lake with rocks and moss, and with trees and mountain in background — *Stephanie dips into Panther Lake while hiking in West Kootenay.*

As a lab quality coordinator, Stephanie also performs safety and biosafety audits, which involves travel to lab sites across Interior Health. “This is one of my favourite parts of the job, as I get to meet in person many of the frontline staff across the region.”

Stephanie believes a career in medical labs is unique because it combines scientific research and technology with health care.

“If you love science and technology, then medical lab technology is the career for you! We use complex and high-tech lab equipment to analyze patient samples for the purpose of diagnosing disease in patients or monitoring treatment of medical conditions.”

Stephanie has many favourite aspects about her role. “I find that once I’ve met medical lab technologists and assistants, they are more inclined to reach out to me via Microsoft Teams or email. They’ll ask questions, and they feel more comfortable providing suggestions for improvements.” Stephanie also values the autonomy to implement changes that have positive impacts on the daily work of the frontline staff, adding that “sometimes a simple change can make a world of difference!”

Man, woman and teenagers, family of mother, father, son, daughter, standing in lush green forest with trees and foliage — *Stephanie with her husband and children in Maui.*

Her greatest motivation in the field of medical lab technology is knowing that MLTs play an integral part of the health-care team by providing behind-the-scenes patient care.

“Being able to work with a great team of lab professionals is awesome. We have managed to work together through some challenging times in the workplace (short-staffed, increased workload). It's been a rollercoaster ride with its ups and downs, but knowing that we are helping patients get the care they need and deserve, it's worth it.”

-- Stephanie Rodgers

Beyond her career, Stephanie enjoys all kinds of outdoor activities, especially living in the Kootenays, which she considers her own outdoor playground. You’ll find her out there snowboarding, snowshoeing, hiking, camping and paddle boarding. She’s also developed a love for gardening.

“It’s amazing being able to go out to my yard to pick fruits and vegetables, especially with the price of produce these days,” says Stephanie. Most recently, she’s been experimenting with a winter garden, which has had a mixture of success. “We ate garden carrots and beets all the way until December. Eating garden carrots with Christmas dinner was pretty special! Unfortunately, the Brussels sprouts didn’t fair very well – I only got a handful of small, marble-sized sprouts!”