About Critical Values

After immigrating to the U.S. in her forties, Tarulata Nitin Patel, MS, CLS, SH(ASCP), DLM, overcame professional rejection in the 1990s through resilience and career reinvention. Over the past twenty-five years, Ms. Patel has become a respected special hematologist and lecturer with the Hematology/Oncology Department of VAMC Atlanta, GA. She shares her story in celebration of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month.  

In 1991, I immigrated to the United States from Gujarat, India, nearing the age of forty, with two young children and fifteen years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry. I was full of hope but quickly realized that breaking into the professional world here would be far more challenging than I had imagined. I didn't have a U.S. degree or local work experience. My applications were consistently rejected. I felt invisible. But I didn't give up.   

After meeting with the Florida licensure department, I was encouraged to have my degree evaluated and write an essay detailing my professional experience. Though my degree was accepted, I lacked clinical laboratory experience in the U.S. and was offered a technician license.   

In March 1992, I accepted my first job as a lab technician. Finding your first job in a new country without a network is incredibly difficult and I'm forever grateful for that opportunity. Six months later, I was given an outstanding performance rating and a recommendation letter to apply for the Medical Technologist Florida board exam, which I took and passed.   

By December 1992, I had earned my national certification (MT NCA) and began working at Grady Memorial Hospital, in Atlanta, Georgia. There I gained deep experience in hematology, blood banking, and chemistry.  

In 1996, I earned my Specialist in Hematology certification (SH, ASCP). Then in 2001, I joined the VA Hospital's Hematology/Oncology department and took on real decision-making responsibilities. In 2003, I became a Diplomate in Laboratory Management (DLM, ASCP).   

For the past twenty-five years, I've worked closely with physicians, fellows, and residents from Emory University, doing bone marrow procedures, reading bone marrow smears, reviewing abnormal CBC smears, and contributing to the preliminary diagnosis of complex blood disorders including anemia, leukemia, TTP, DIC, and HUS.  

I have participated in an Emory University medical technology program by giving hematology lectures and I am actively involved in teaching in the hematology/oncology fellowship program.   

This journey—from rejection to recognition —has been shaped by persistence, learning, and the support of those who’ve believe in me. As an immigrant woman navigating cultural and inclusion barriers in the 1990s, I had to work twice as hard to prove my worth. But every challenge became a steppingstone. Today, I'm proud of the career I've built and the impact I have made. And I'm not done yet; I still love what I do and look forward to many more years of service.   

To those who are just starting out, especially immigrants and women in STEM: keep going. Your story matters. Your skills matter. And your perseverance will pay off.