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By Jennie L. Ilustre
Capital College held a graduation ceremony last September 19 in Gallows Road in Tysons Corner, Virginia. Founded in 2010, Capital College is the only known area healthcare school to include classroom instruction and the laboratory training component at the same site.
Dr. Stephen W. Chang, president of United Medical Laboratories, Inc., also runs Capital College. He presided over the ceremony. “We have a 100% job rate for our graduates,” he said in a subsequent interview. “They have worked in laboratories, doctor’s offices, hospitals and nursing homes.”
Three graduates, Jiamin Liu, Gui Fang Lai and Ping Zhang, who completed training in phlebotomy, said their training sessions made them excited “to learn more” in their field. Liu explained phlebotomy involved training in drawing blood for transfusion, diagnosis, or experiment.
Graduate Ping Zhang Binxue Zhang trained in histotechnology, which involves preparing tissue for examination by pathologists. Six internship students were from Taiwan. They were Shih-Chieh Lo, Pei-Hsuan Lee, Li-Feng Bu, Ling-Chi Kuo, Ting-Yi Wang, Yu-Hsuan Sun.
Instructors Regina Lazaro and Dustin Lo presented the certificates of course completion to the phlebotomy and histology graduates. Medical Technologist Lazaro also presented the laboratory coats to the other graduates. Dr. Chang handed out the certificates and the lab coats to the participants of the internship program.
Dr. George Chang, Stephen’s father, delivered the closing remarks. Citing statistics from newspaper reports, he noted the steady decline in federal agency hiring. He told graduates that the private sector offers better employment opportunities. The elder Chang is professor and founder of Capital College, and also founder of United Medical Laboratories, Inc. He stressed, “Success starts here.”
In his welcome remarks Dr. Stephen Chang said: “There are a lot of changes going on in health care now, which are being driven both by government policy in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, otherwise known as Obamacare, by statewide initiatives, and by economic incentives,”
“Despite it all, health care is already close to 20% of the U.S. GDP (Gross Domestic Product), and is projected to reach 25% of GDP over the next 20 years,” he pointed out. “The country also spends the most on healthcare per person of any country in the world.”
He added: “So what does this mean for us? Well, our nation is getting older and more and more people need health care. There will always be a need for laboratory services, and that need is only going to go up. That is why our school is focusing on training medical laboratory technologists, cytotechnologists, histotechnologists, medical assistants, and phlebotomists. The demand for health care professionals, particularly in the laboratory space, will only continue to increase over the next few years and decades.”
He concluded with an advice and an assurance that Capital College would always be there for them. “Graduates, you are entering the field at a great and exciting time. I want you to know that as you go out and work, you should take pride in your achievements and in the part you play in this noble profession,” he said.
He added: “My final bit of advice: Remain true to your sense of professionalism in all that you do. Make sure you take the national board examinations. There are several of them out there, and passing one will certainly help elevate your credentials even further. Continue to grow and learn every day, as mental stagnation will be your undoing. Finally, remember that you have the lifetime support of each other and Capital College. Always know that you can turn to us for help in the future.”
Dr. Chang also thanked instructors Jessica Chang and Regina Lazaro in the phlebotomy program, and also Dustin Lo in the histology program. He praised them for their “time and dedication to teaching and training this next generation of health care professionals.” He also thanked “Pond, Nancy, Zohra, Chen-Hong, Sandy, Dr. Chu, and Dr. Chang for your assistance in teaching the students from Taiwan.”
He acknowledged the administrative support of Alyssa Stine, who also gave the introductory remarks at the ceremony, Robert Bu, Marianne Wu, and his parents Judy Chang and Dr. George Chang.
Capital College, founded in 2010, has recorded 27 graduates since it started classes in 2011. It has six instructors and nine members in its staff. Graduates come from this country, Thailand, Philippines, Taiwan and China. The College offers courses in ESL (English as Second Language), Phlebotomy, Medical Assisting, Histotechnology, Cytotechnology, and Medical Laboratory Technology.
“We offer M visas for students from overseas who want to come here and learn,” said Dr. Stephen Chang. Looking into the future, he said the College plans to include ultrasound and x-ray courses, as well as dental assisting and pathology grossing courses in a few years. “We also plan to start an urgent care and a radiology practice, which will allow our students excellent clinical experiences,” he added.
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Dr. Stephen W. Chang is currently the president of United Medical Laboratories, Inc. He also manages Capital College, owned by his parents Judy Chang and Dr. George Chang. “I am excited about taking over from my parents because of the potentials of helping professionals as well as those in need of healthcare,” he said in his low-key, humble manner.
Passing the torch to their son is a mere formality. Mrs. Chang said her son “is already running Capital College.”
Dr. Chang, youthful and brimming with plans, is more than qualified to do so. He earned his bachelor’s degree in Applied Mathematics at Harvard, and his medical degree at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. He completed his radiology training at Columbia in New York. He specialized in women’s imaging at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. A master’s degree in business administration from Wharton University of Pennsylvania rounds up his expertise.
Stephen was born in Chicago and grew up in McLean, Virginia. He studied in Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology. He is married with two young sons. His wife is at Johns Hopkins doing a residency in anesthesiology. He has two sisters. One is in Emergency Medicine and the other is currently applying for Plastic Surgery residency programs.
He credits his parents for their advice in life and career. “They encouraged me to go into healthcare, saying I would be a part of a noble profession,” said Dr. Chang. They also pointed out the job security it offered.
Dr. Chang added: “They told me that health is the most important thing in life, and that all the success in the world won’t matter if I don’t take care of myself first. I would apply both of those lessons to the world at large. In all that I do, I would want to enhance people’s health first so that they can enjoy their lives. That is why, even though I trained as a doctor, I want to expand and start additional healthcare businesses.”