Wax melting is a high-risk part of the histology process. Whilst the tissue processor will take care of the wax infiltration of the sample, the embedding process requires plenty of high-quality wax, at the perfect temperature. Modern embedding centres often have reservoirs for heated wax – but how do you make the molten wax in […]

Extraordinary circumstances require innovative solutions.  With the airline industry all but grounded by the pandemic, Emirates has led the way with a ground-breaking 10-minute Covid19 blood test which is carried out at the airport prior to departure, ensuring that all of their passengers are free from the virus as they travel.  They have also pioneered […]

Digital Pathology is taking huge lab-leaps forward as a result of the Covid19 pandemic.  Just as GPs have been reporting that their surgeries moved forward by the equivalent of 5 years in 72 hours at the end of March in terms of remote consulting, so too has the shift been dramatic in the laboratory setting. […]

The company has a long and distinguished history, having been created in 1910 by Mr F R Chopping, who developed a specialist soluble medium for laboratory microbe cultures.  The company is mentioned in Mr Chopping’s obituary of 1947, as follows, “He was the first to adapt the free wheel to a centrifuge and to apply […]

As with so many of the theories surrounding Coronavirus, the jury’s out.   There seems to be little scientific consensus on the general use of thermometers to detect Covid19, largely because both scientists and doctors are reluctant to endorse the results unequivocally. It is true that thermometers can misread.  Plus, people who are in the early […]

“The secret of change is to focus all of your energy not on fighting the old, but on building the new.” – Socrates Since the beginning of the Covid19 pandemic, there has been speculation about the long-term implications of the crisis on the way that we work.  Reflections have been across all sectors, but it […]

As the media obsesses with the translation of the government’s guidelines into tangible steps to get people back to work, most pathology labs are taking a more pragmatic and constructive view by simply getting on with it. It’s very often the most straight-forward measures that can play a part.  Creating independent work stations with space […]

It might only be a matter of weeks, but it feels like months since Histology labs were running at full capacity.  However, in a very short amount of time, we expect that many will be ramping things back up to normal, with emergency and cancer operations coming back on track. Getting back up to speed […]

Patchy information is beginning to emerge about the impact Covid19 is having in the laboratory.  With A&E attendance down a whopping 30% in March 2020 compared to the same month last year (and the lock-down only kicking-in on March 23), as well as the cancellation of all non-emergency operations, it is unsurprising that many pathology […]

This is an appeal to anybody who is still seeking gloves, surgical masks, visors, anti-bacterial hand soap and anti-viral spray, please contact us.  We will do everything we can to help. Nick Wallach, Director of Solmedia, explains more fully, ‘because we already have established supply chains throughout the world, we are in an excellent position […]