A LABORATORY SCIENTIST ON A GLOBAL MISSION

Medical Laboratory scientist James Adams ’04 has helped organize supplies for clinics in Haiti and interpreted test results for malaria and E. coli at his job at Somerset Medical Center.

As a citizen ambassador in the People to People program, he has visited hospitals and clinics around the world. “The purpose is to learn, participate in meaningful dialogue, network and gain understanding. If we can offer advice, we do,’’ says Adams, who is president of the New Jersey chapter of the American Society for Clinical Laboratory Science (ASCLS-NJ).

During his travels, Adams has learned that rural Chinese hospitals are worse than their urban counterparts, that Russian citizens can order their own diagnostic tests and that rampant unemployment in Egypt means a dearth of jobs for lab professionals.

Adams, who grew up in Jersey City and lives in Piscataway, won a full tuition academic scholarship to Caldwell College and says the school’s biology program was invaluable. “It laid the foundation for me.’’ After receiving his bachelor’s in biology from Caldwell he went to UMDNJ where he received a B.S. in clinical laboratory science and then a master’s in health sciences.

At home, Adams has been an advocate for his colleagues as a “voice for other laboratory professionals in the state.’’ This year, he received an award for his work on the ASCLS-NJ newsletter, “The Analyzer.’’ He also serves on the UMDNJ MLS Program Advisory Committee.

Adams knows that laboratory professionals play a vital role in healthcare. “In a short amount of time, you can make a big difference,’’ he says. “ Every patient that passes through the hospital goes through my hands, so to speak.’’