WUTH biomedical scientist makes history

A biomedical scientist at Wirral University Teaching Hospital (WUTH) has shared her trailblazing story of the study into skin disease as part of International Day of Women and Girls in Science.

Liya Bibby, from Greasby, is one of the first people ever to qualify in the UK to become a consultant biomedical scientist in dermatopathology, which is the study of diseases of skin. 

Liya came to the UK from Russia in 1998. In 2003 she started working as a clinical support worker in the histology department which handles microscopic analysis of bodily tissues.

Liya said: “Once I started working in histology, I basically fell in love with it. There is less automation in histology than other sciences, so it’s extremely dextrous work. You cut samples and put them onto slides for analysis under the microscope. Sometimes the tissue sample is really small, so accuracy and precision are vital because there’s no room for mistakes. Preparing a section requires a great deal of skill, and I took a lot of pride in my work.”

Keen to progress, Liya completed a biomedical scientist registration portfolio in 2007 and specialist portfolio in 2011 and became a registered specialist biomedical scientist (BMS) in histopathology which is the study of diseased tissue.

In 2012 she became aware that nationally, some BMSs were starting to carry out dissection of specimens and her manager supported her to train in dissection. She became the first person in the department to do so. After studying for two years, she passed her Diploma of Expert Practice in Histological Dissection, and in 2017 became an advanced biomedical scientist in dissection.

She added: “It was a great feeling to be the first one in the department to achieve the job title.”

She later embarked on another four years of study and became of one the first five people in the country to obtain the qualification for reporting of histology cases as a biomedical scientist, a significant accomplishment.

Liya said: “I feel very proud of myself for my achievements, although I’ve never considered them to be any different because I’m a woman. The team I work with are fantastic and I feel very privileged because I’ve never felt any prejudice or discrimination. We are all equals.”

Janelle Holmes, Chief Executive at Wirral University Teaching Hospital, said: “It is fantastic to be able to celebrate the achievements of women in science on this day.  I’m extremely proud of Liya for her significant achievements and commitment to developing her skills. We are fully supportive of staff development wherever possible, as ultimately, the people who benefit are our patients.”

ENDS