Washington Regional

Tyler Giess

Professional Journey Leading to Washington Regional Leadership

I began my career in Hays, Kansas, in 1999 as a lab assistant in a role that exposed me to the variety of departments and sections within a clinical laboratory. I gained significant experience in chemistry and microbiology, receiving and processing, and also had an opportunity to serve in my first supervisory role. This experience prepared me to earn a degree in clinical laboratory science from the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, which included clinical rotations at Texas Children’s Hospital and other prestigious institutions in the Texas Medical Center.

Upon completing my ASCP board exams in 2008, I began my first job as a certified medical laboratory scientist in the microbiology department at The Medical Center of Aurora in Colorado, but it did not take me long to miss the mild Texas winters. I spent the next 15+ years of my career at Texas Children’s Hospital, starting as a night shift technologist in transfusion medicine. Over time, I moved into a technical specialist position overseeing the department’s quality management program. I gained tremendous experience in process improvement and change management in this role while also having opportunities to work with physician leaders on various published research projects. While in this role, I obtained my MBA from Temple University.

In 2015, I was granted an opportunity to serve as the Assistant Director of Pathology for a new hospital and laboratory that was under construction for Texas Children's Hospital in The Woodlands, just north of Houston. The facility successfully opened in 2017, and I continued in the Assistant Director role until 2021. This role afforded me a ton of opportunities to learn and grow as a leader as we dealt with events such as Hurricane Harvey, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the implementation of a new laboratory information system with our change to Epic Beaker.

"It is through the communication that you find creative solutions, alternative arrangements, and stay abreast of shifting priorities"

In 2021, I was given an opportunity to move into hospital administration and serve as the Director of Business Operations & Support Services as the organization prepared to build and open another new hospital, this time in Austin, Texas. I gained a vast amount of knowledge and experience in this role as I had a broad scope of responsibility that included many of the non-nursing departments in the hospital. The hospital opened in February 2024.

In late 2024, I was looking for an opportunity to move closer to family. I was offered the Director of Laboratory position at Washington Regional, a great opportunity at a great health care system that has served the Northwest Arkansas community for 75 years and continues to grow.

Balancing Timelines, Resources, and Priorities in Laboratory Services

I think this mostly comes down to communication—communication with your team, with your leadership, across the organization and with your external partners. It is through the communication that you find creative solutions, alternative arrangements, and stay abreast of shifting priorities.

Ensuring Team Success amid Regulatory Changes

I always try to look at it through the lens of how regulatory changes could impact my organization or laboratory, and I do my best to stay engaged and aware of current events, especially through industry publications and associations. I take advantage of many educational webinars and events that are offered throughout the hospital and laboratory industries. I also tap into the professional network that I have grown over my career.

Strategies for Compliance without Delaying Timelines

Learning from some great mentors, I try to embed compliance into day-to-day operations and decision-making, then set up an effective quality management program to help monitor and allow an opportunity to correct issues before they become big problems. Outside of that, it comes down to the ability to manage competing timelines, resource constraints, and shifting priorities as discussed above.

Fostering Collaboration to Accelerate Laboratory Operations

As the laboratory’s administrative leader, I am continually working to build relationships with leaders and stakeholders in other departments across the organization, especially at the nursing and physician levels, as those are the ones who primarily utilize our laboratory services. I also like to remain focused on the goal of providing the best care for the patient, not what is best for my department or another department, but what is best for the patient. Typically, if healthcare leaders can remain focused on that, then they can work together to make the entire team and patient experience better.

The Future of Digital Health Technologies in Laboratories

Technology changes so rapidly that it is always exciting to think about where healthcare and laboratory operations could be in the future. Many of the technologies we see today are a result of the need to become more efficient with our operations due to staffing shortages and increasing expenses. Digital pathology and automation are areas that continue to evolve, and we are only beginning to understand what AI might allow us to do.

Advice for Aspiring Laboratory Science Professional

There are so many different roles and things that can be done within the laboratory field. I would encourage aspiring professionals to continue to learn and grow their skills and learn how to effectively build relationships. This will prepare them for opportunities when they do arise. I would also encourage them to continue to advocate for the laboratory field. We need more students who are aware and interested in the opportunities the laboratory science field can offer.