BBTS – Where reliability is king

This was only my second BBTS. It amazes me just how small and intimate the blood transfusion community is – I witnessed many of the same faces mixing and mingling with each other, recognising each other and sharing stories and opinions. It was also heartening to be recognised by some of the delegates. The bottom line is that, whether you are an exhibitor or a delegate, the ‘community’ is essentially a collection of like-minded people. It’s a people thing.

What also brought this home was listening to the delegates expressing their various hopes and fears – about the future of the NHS, about the teams of people who share their workspaces, about the doctors and the nurses, and about the patients who will feel the chill wind of change in the most direct of ways. There is a lot of uncertainty about and it has unsettled so many good people.

Fortunately, here at Lorne, our only real changes were the new faces on our stand (and our brand new fridge, of course). Maintaining a reputation for reliability in uncertain times requires investing in people. I’ve said it before and I will say it again – it is a people business after all. Those who attended BBTS this year will have met Claire (UK Sales) & Nathan (Marketing) for the first time – additions to the Lorne team, helping to man our expanded stand. I know how much they enjoyed the experience – they are part of the team that delivers a reliable service to our customers week in and week out. For them it was about putting faces to familiar names.

From all accounts, BBTS 2012 was a success. Harrogate was an excellent venue. We enjoyed meeting so many friends of Lorne – after all, we have been attending BBTS from the start. Add to that the fact that Lorne has been in the blood transfusion business for nearly forty years. So when it comes to reliability, that’s kind of hard to beat. We look forward to seeing you all again in Birmingham next year.

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Blood Groups and the risk of heart disease

There is a link between your blood group and the risk of heart disease. So says a group of researchers from Harvard University. It seems that people like me – with type O blood – have some natural protection from certain types of heart disease. My colleague – who has the rarer type AB blood – is not quite so lucky. He is more vulnerable than most.
They don’t know precisely why this is the case. The study compared the incidence of blood groups and heart disease and found that there was a correlation. The mechanisms involved are not fully understood, though individuals with type O blood benefit from a substance that may assist blood flow and therefore reduce the risk of clotting.

It also seems that type A blood is associated with raised cholesterol levels and type AB is linked with inflammation – not great for the arteries! The good news for my colleague – and all other type ABs – is that such individuals are more likely to survive heart bypass surgery than any other blood type. So, as usual with a lot of these health news stories, it’s swings and roundabouts.

Still, as the researchers were keen to point out, relying on your blood group to dig you out of a hole is not such a great idea. Whilst it is always good to know your blood group, there are other things you can do to keep in good shape. Healthy eating, getting regular exercise and avoiding smoking are still the best ways to beat heart disease. And there’s nothing much you can do about your blood group anyway. You are pretty much stuck with it.

Anyway, cheer up! I have the conclusions to my own little bit of research. Lorne Anti-A, Lorne Anti-B and Lorne Anti-A,B are the reagents of choice to group an individual’s ABO blood group. Now, that’s what I call news!
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Worthington Bio-chemicals

Lorne is the exclusive distributor for Worthington Bio-chemicals in the UK. Worthington has been around since 1947 and is a major producer of enzymes. Enzymes are proteins that can act as catalysts – used to get chemical reactions going in living organisms.

Many of Worthington’s products are used in medical research. Probably the most important of these is collagenase, an enzyme that is used in dissolving tissue. It allows cells to be studied in culture as it separates the cells whilst keeping them alive and functioning. It is certainly a common product that Lorne sells on behalf of Worthington in the UK market.

Worthington produces a wide range of bio-chemicals. Should you be interested in learning more about the Worthington range of products, please contact the Lorne Marketing Team on 01189 212264 or email marketing@lornelabs.com.
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Object of the Week

2012 is National Pathology Year. I have got to confess that this has not been high on my radar this year. It may well have passed the notice of many others too. Throughout the year, The Royal College of Pathologists have been publishing an ‘object of the week’ – something which has some connection to, and made a difference in,  the world of Pathology.

Some of the objects have been fairly central to the work of pathologists. Some others have been a little more subtle. Recently, one of the objects was a pigeon. Pigeons have played their part in evolutionary science – Darwin used them in his studies - and this was deemed worthy of celebration by the College. I would find it hard to disagree with that – Darwin is always worthy of celebration and I am always thrilled when I see his face on UK banknotes.

It did get me thinking though. What would Lorne choose if it was to celebrate the work of transfusion and other blood related sciences in this manner? What would be a suitable object with which to honour those who have worked in this field? What could represent the work of Blundell, Landsteiner, Levine and Stetson?

And what would Lorne choose to represent its own contribution, in bringing high quality, stable wet reagents to blood transfusion services and hospitals across the world? I’m not sure just yet. Perhaps that is for others to decide. Maybe a phone might represent our commitment to communicating with our customers – in delivering great customer service. Perhaps something out there could represent the competitive pricing of our reagents and kits. Or perhaps, quite simply, one of our bone china mugs – for many years a feature of our attendance at exhibitions – could adequately represent the long service that Lorne has provided to the world of diagnostic reagents?

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BBTS – New bears on the block

It seems hard to believe that it is nearly time for BBTS 2012. Last year, Lorne joined hundreds of delegates and exhibitors at the SECC in Glasgow for BBTS 2011. This time around, we are planning to meet up in the beautiful Yorkshire town of Harrogate. It will be great to meet up with so many old friends and familiar faces.

Last year, we brought along one of our superb fridges. One of the features of Lorne’s participation at such events in recent years is the Lorne bear – a cute little charity bear that kind-hearted exhibitors can release from the fridge and take home in exchange for a modest donation to a children’s charity. You may remember the bear from last year – he can be seen sporting a gold medal just a couple of articles down this page.

This year, we will be joined by his rather striking cousin – a bright red bear wearing a cute little T-shirt sporting the name of the featured charity – Children with Cancer. I have no doubt that our friends at BBTS will do their best to liberate as many bears as they can from the dazzling new Lorne fridge. In the process, they might just marvel at the high quality, technologically advanced refrigerator that doubles up as a temporary home for the bears.

Feel free to come along and meet the Lorne team. Christine, James, Nathan and Claire will all be there, inviting you to pick up a copy of the new catalogue or encouraging you to help yourselves to some of our exciting new promotional items. It will be great to see old friends again – some of whom will have known Lorne for most of the company’s 38 years. If you are going to BBTS, we look forward to seeing you in Harrogate.
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Our real Olympic story

I recently proposed the idea that the Olympic Games could open up a new category for diagnostic reagents. I know that seems a bit far-fetched. There is never likely to be an Olympic gold medal for a blood group test kit or a reagent. But Lorne has had its very own connection to the Olympic Games of 2012 and we have all shared the excitement of the experience.

Lorne Marketing Manager, Christine Rayner, has been a volunteer at the 2012 Games. She was one of many thousands of volunteers who helped to make the Games such a special event. We are justifiably proud of her contribution to this great piece of sporting history. We also love the work she does for Lorne and we know many Lorne customers who would agree with that. Christine is our golden girl.

As for Lorne’s products – whether we are talking about a blood group test kit or diagnostic reagents of any kind – we would still wish them to be gold medal winners in their own right.

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Striking gold

Being in the UK at present, it is hard to escape the Olympic Games. The UK has struck gold time and time again and seems destined (as I write) to finish in third place behind the USA and China. It is a wonderful achievement – last week I mused about Bradley Wiggins’ success and how he might owe some part of it to his blood platelets.

Well, I am going to stick my neck on the line and predict a gold medal for Lorne. OK! Maybe, there isn’t an Olympic category for blood grouping reagents, but that may change some day. This time around, the Olympics have seen some new categories, like women’s boxing. It has also seen some categories have a final outing, like wind-surfing. So, you never know what categories might crop up at some future games.

I can imagine the individual and team medals – best blood reagent (individual), best blood type test kit (team effort), longest reagent shelf life, fastest reagent delivery, highest reagent quality – the list goes on. The main difference, of course, is that I do not see Lorne coming third in any medals table. I like to think it will be gold all the way.

So, until the International Olympic Committee wakes up to the possibility, we will just have to keep on carrying our own torch. Faster deliveries, higher standards and stronger reagents - it’s the Olympic ideal and our everyday promise.
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