Revitalising an academic pathology department: lessons learnt

Transpathology: molecular imaging-based pathology

Pathology is the medical specialty concerned with the study of the disease nature and causes, playing a key role in bridging basic researches and clinical medicine. In the course of development, pathology has significantly expanded our understanding of disease, and exerted enormous impact on the management of patients. However, challenges facing pathology, the inherent invasiveness of pathological practice and the persistent concerns on the sample representativeness, constitute its limitations. Molecular imaging is a noninvasive technique to visualize, characterize, and measure biological processes at the molecular level in living subjects. With the continuous development of equipment and probes, molecular imaging has enabled an increasingly precise evaluation of pathophysiological changes. A new pathophysiology visualization system based on molecular imaging is forming and shows the great potential to reform the pathological practice. Several improvements in "trans-," including trans-scale, transparency, and translation, would be driven by this new kind of pathological practice. Pathological changes could be evaluated in a trans-scale imaging mode; tissues could be transparentized to better present the underlying pathophysiological information; and the translational processes of basic research to the clinical practice would be better facilitated. Thus, transpathology would greatly facilitate in deciphering the pathophysiological events in a multiscale perspective, and supporting the precision medicine in the future.

Generating Discretionary Income in an Academic Department of Pathology

The 2021 Association of Pathology Chairs Annual Meeting included a chairs' session and a premeeting discussion-group webinar sponsored by the Senior Fellows Group (former chairs of academic departments of pathology who have remained active in the Association of Pathology Chairs) focused on generating discretionary income for departments. Discretionary income was defined as revenue that can be used by the department with few, if any, restrictions. Such income is particularly desirable given limitations on departmental budgets. Four discussion-group panelists presented the funds-flow model in their respective institutions and how they derived and used discretionary income. Discretionary income was obtained from both external sources (eg, philanthropy, indirect cost recovery, partnerships with outside entities, medical education courses, research laboratory agreements, clinical trials) and internal sources (eg, core facilities, institutional programmatic support, institutional incentive programs). Significant departmental variations were associated with differences in institutional financial structure and policies, revenue-generating capabilities of the department and individual faculty, practice plan policies, donor intentions, and geographic market forces. Most finances were dependent upon a robust funds-flow model. Uses of discretionary funds included salary support, recruitment expenses (including start-up packages), research equipment, space renovation, social events, support of academic programs, and travel. Panelists also discussed particular challenges of discretionary-fund generation and use during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic. Notably, each institution had its own unique methodology for generating discretionary income, and no obvious standard approach was identified. The 2 moderators emphasized the importance of identifying and understanding opportunities, issues, and institutional culture surrounding generation and use of discretionary funds.