To think this must be a pretty grim job

[Happyhippy45]

I've been having gastric issues and have had diarrhoea on and off for more than 3 weeks. (Possible celiac disease.) I had to hand in two samples of poo. Some poor sod is going to have to examine/test this could smelling vial. I was traumatised enough just collecting it. I now have a new found admiration for the scientists? doing this job......I'd never really thought about these wonderful people before.
In my mind I picture a lab full of folks in white coats and masks all with their faces screwed up in disgust.
How many times do they feel they need to wash their hands before eating lunch?

*foul smelling

Not everyone is terrified of poo and germs etc. There are many 'disgusting' things we all have to do in life and the one you mention seems pretty minor compared to what a nurse goes through on an average day.

People are so uptight about the body and germs etc these days.

I worked in a Pathology lab, and Microbiology (where the poo normally goes) is grim. It smells so, sooooo bad because they basically have to warm the samples in order to grow the bacteria. I couldn't work in Microbiology.

YANBU! That is grim. I suppose you get over it to it though, like parents & nappies? Just another reason I don't have children haha

Not particularly. There are people that have to deal with far worse daily as a matter of course. Don't think testing your poo is really that high up the scale of disgusting things that need doing.

I always think I could do anything except work in an abattoir.

I do feel for the poor sods who have to empty fog poo bins, though.

It's not the fear of poo/germ that makes it disgusting.....I used to be able to happily munch on a pizza while I watched my DH changed dd nappy. Didn't bother me at all. I think it's because it's in a vial that makes it rank. Knowing that they have to mess about with it....and be subjected to the smell of my dodgy guts.

Microbiology smells bad constantly, one particular sample won't cause anyone to bat an eyelid, it's just yet another sample.

They have gloves on and will probably be doing it in a ventilated chamber.

There are much worse things to come across in path labs than a tiny vial of poo so please don't waste another moment worrying about it!

I've worked in a microbiology lab. It was actually my job to get poo onto slides. It was gross. At first. Then you get used to it.

I found it much better than working with chemicals in pathology as I used to have nightmares about inhaling all the chemicals used to pickle limbs.

Poo smells but it's not formaldehyde!

Although mine don't stink

babs yeah chemicals smell worse than shit and prob not as harmful.
I suppose you get used to anything.
I hadn't really thought about the reality of stool samples really. Like the fact that there is someone actually checking them and doing loads of clever stuff to figure out what's wrong with our bodies.
I'm actually full of admiration.

Someof us have poo that just naturally smells of roses

Gillian McKeith made a whole public career out of examining, smelling and prodding people's poo so I guess some people just don't mind it. At least they can legitimately say "My job is shit".

Meh. Better job than scraping sanitary products out of waste water filters (i.e. Where the poo gets mushed and filtered). My brother had to do that for a while. Apparently the biggest risk was the potential for an explosion if an ignition source met the methane being released.

This song popped into my head. My kids sang it for months after watching this episode of scrubs.
"Everything comes down to poo......."
m.youtube.com/watch?v=pnIk0npINiE

designed yeah that sounds like a worse job.

I do feel for the poor sods who have to empty fog poo bins, though.

What is a fog poo bin?!

My 13 year old son was diagnosed with crohns in December last year and omfg I hate collecting all the poo samples! Feel heartily sorry for the people testing them !

queen dog poo bin?
13crows your job sounds tough

Ok that makes sense. Had visions of special roadside bins that people go in if there is too much fog to drive....

It's been a long day