Generations in the Lab: Mimi and Lexie Share a Path in Medical Laboratory Science

By Ryan Clark
CHS Communications Director

More than four decades after Mimi Loan began building a career in clinical laboratory science, new generations in her family are pursuing the same path.

Loan, 65, of Nicholasville, will soon be inducted into the College of Health Sciences Hall of Fame — an honor recognizing alumni whose careers have made a lasting impact on their professions.

Her legacy is now quietly inspiring the next generation, including Lexie Hall, a current CHS junior who is following a similar path studying Medical Laboratory Science.

Hall is Loan’s niece, and Hall said she has long admired the career her aunt built.

“I loved hearing that Mimi was getting recognized,” Hall said. “She has put in the work for her profession and MLS professionals, and I’m so glad she is getting recognized.”
 

A career built in the laboratory

Loan earned her bachelor’s degree in medical technology from the College of Health Sciences in 1983, launching a career that would span 45 years with Quest Diagnostics. She retired in March 2025 after decades working in national leadership roles that took her across the United States and internationally.

She credits the university’s clinical laboratory science faculty for setting the foundation for that career.

“The professors teaching in the medical technology program had a profound impact on my career,” Loan said. “They demonstrated a passion for teaching the clinical laboratory curriculum and held the students to the highest standards of learning.”

Among the mentors who influenced her were Sr. Marie Vittetoe, a former professor and department chair, and Anne Stiene-Martin, a hematology professor who inspired Loan’s lifelong interest in the discipline.

“Dr. Stiene-Martin instilled in me a passion for hematology that lasted over four decades,” Loan said.

That passion led Loan to earn a specialty certification in hematology and hemostasis through the College of American Pathologists. Over the course of her career, she witnessed dramatic changes in the profession — from the growth of automation to major advances in diagnostic technology.

“In four decades, I never stopped learning about new technologies,” she said.
 

The power of laboratory science

Clinical laboratory professionals play a critical role in modern health care, even though much of their work happens behind the scenes.

Loan said that reality makes the profession both challenging and deeply rewarding.

“Seventy percent of clinical decisions are driven by laboratory data,” she said. “Your experience in the workplace will enable you to drive improvements in patient care.”

She also hopes to encourage more students to enter the field, which faces a nationwide workforce shortage.

“It is a profession that is not well understood,” Loan said. “A pipeline of educated talent is the only way we can fill the gap and address the national crisis we are facing in health care staffing.”
 

A new generation discovers the field

For Hall, 21, the path toward medical laboratory sciences began during high school in Louisville.

A participant in Project Lead the Way STEM courses, Hall completed a required health care shadowing experience, and reached out to a family member for help. Her cousin (and Mimi’s daughter) Haley, who also studied the medical science major at Eastern Kentucky, welcomed her into the blood bank at Jewish Hospital in Louisville.

That experience sparked her interest in the field.

“My favorite classes were science classes,” Hall said. “When I shadowed at the blood bank, I realized how interesting the laboratory side of health care could be.”

Now a junior in CHS, Hall said the close-knit environment has been one of her favorite parts of the experience.

“With such a small class, I get to really know the people around me and my professors,” she said. “I also love the hands-on part of my major — the labs for every class where I get to apply topics that are talked about in lecture.”
 

Following the path

Hall said her immediate goal is to graduate and excel during her clinical training before beginning a career as a laboratory scientist.

The field offers a wide range of specialties and career paths — something she is eager to investigate.

“There are so many options and specialties in lab sciences that I can’t wait to explore,” Hall said.

For Loan, seeing younger students pursue the same profession — including those from her own family — reinforces why she remains passionate about advocating for the field.

“It is a privilege to have had four decades of experience and to witness the changes in technology and automation,” Loan said.

As Hall continues her journey in the same profession, the connection between the two reflects something larger: How one generation of laboratory scientists can influence the next.

And for Hall, that influence is worth celebrating.

“I would like to tell her thank you for everything you’ve done for our field,” Hall said. “You deserve to be recognized for your hard work.”

The CHS Hall of Fame and Awards Ceremony will be held from 5:30-8 p.m., March 31 at The Signature Club.