The benefits of giving back: Chantell Hodgson

My original journey started as a training officer working in Cellular Pathology as a senior Biomedical Science - supporting and empowering colleagues through registration and specialist portfolios. One of the immediately apparent things was not only that I was imparting my knowledge and experience to my team but also refreshing my knowledge, learning and influencing my perception. This enabled new and alternative ways of working to ensure gold standard practice 

Meeting and interacting with external candidates, trainers, and other personnel is rewarding. It provides an invaluable opportunity for all involved to learn from each other. 

The natural progression was to become a portfolio verifier, initially for the local Higher Education Institution (HEI) as part of my extended responsibilities as a part-time lecturer and then with the IBMS for both registration and specialist portfolios. Meeting and interacting with external candidates, trainers, and other personnel is rewarding. It provides an invaluable opportunity for all involved to learn from each other. 

Communication and sound judgment skills are a must in being a verifier/examiner. Excellent communication skills are essential throughout the verification or examination procedure to ensure an effective and successful outcome - allowing the candidate to be at ease, be their best, and shine through the process. Making judgements on an individual's knowledge and competence through the snapshot of evidence they present and the personal interaction during the assessment is also key not only for a successful outcome for the candidate but to ensuring being effective in the role as a verifier/examiner. 

Being able to give clear and honest feedback and direction, to engage and empower the whole team is one of the best things. Looking through their portfolio of evidence, it's great to track their journey and see their expertise grow. Seeing the candidate's enthusiasm, their fire makes you realise why you yourself became a Biomedical Scientist. The joy when they pass - how much it means to them to be a Biomedical Scientist, just starting out their journey, and how they will contribute to the profession's development and towards continuous service improvement. 

Becoming a verifier/examiner, the role has, in turn, empowered me to make difficult and courageous choices in my career, to take that leap of faith, think outside the box and go outside of my comfort zone.

In the years since becoming a verifier/examiner, the role has, in turn, empowered me to make difficult and courageous choices in my career, to take that leap of faith, think outside the box and go outside of my comfort zone. To achieve and be successful, believe that anything is possible if you put your mind and soul into a subject you love and thrive in. 

Now, as the Head of an internationally recognised external quality assessment service for Cellular Pathology organisations, supporting and encouraging education and learning, I continue to be proud to be a Biomedical Scientist.

IBMS portfolio verifiers and examiners play a central role in the assessment of our Registration Training and Specialist qualifications, find out more on how to become one and give back to the profession.