Avantik Leadership

Don McAllister

Sandra Cummings, HT (ASCP)

Vice President, Commercial Operations & Business Development

Sandra Cummings is a seasoned laboratory and histotechnology professional with over 25 years in the clinical and life sciences industry as a commercial leader supporting clinical laboratories, histology teams, and pathology operations.

Sandra currently serves in a leadership role at Avantik, where she brings deep industry knowledge and practical insight into laboratory workflows, equipment service, and operational best practices. Throughout her career, Sandra has worked closely with laboratory leaders and bench professionals to address the real-world challenges of maintaining equipment performance, ensuring compliance, and supporting reliable diagnostic outcomes.

Hear The Latest From Sandra

Risks at the Grossing Bench: Why Safety in Histology Starts Before the Slide

In most histology labs, safety conversations naturally focus on PPE and regulated chemical limits. However, one of the most persistent and underestimated sources of risk sits in plain sight: the grossing bench. As workloads increase and turnaround time tighten, the intersection of sharps, biological material, and chemicals creates a high-injury risk profile that laboratories cannot afford to ignore.

Learn why routine hand positioning and everyday time pressures make grossing one of the most vulnerable steps in your workflow, how subtle ventilation failures escape notice, and why safety at the bench is inseparable from ergonomics and layout. Discover how treating grossing environments with strategic attention directly protects your personnel while securing overall turnaround time and diagnostic quality.

Avantik Leadership

Don McAllister

Sandra Cummings, HT (ASCP)

Vice President, Commercial Operations & Business Development

Sandra Cummings is a seasoned laboratory and histotechnology professional with over 25 years in the clinical and life sciences industry as a commercial leader supporting clinical laboratories, histology teams, and pathology operations. 

Sandra currently serves in a leadership role at Avantik, where she brings deep industry knowledge and practical insight into laboratory workflows, equipment service, and operational best practices. Throughout her career, Sandra has worked closely with laboratory leaders and bench professionals to address the real-world challenges of maintaining equipment performance, ensuring compliance, and supporting reliable diagnostic outcomes. 

Hear The Latest From Sandra

Risks at the Grossing Bench: Why Safety in Histology Starts Before the Slides

In most histology labs, safety conversations naturally focus on PPE and regulated chemical limits. However, one of the most persistent and underestimated sources of risk sits in plain sight: the grossing bench. As workloads increase and turnaround time tighten, the intersection of sharps, biological material, and chemicals creates a high-injury risk profile that laboratories cannot afford to ignore. 

Learn why routine hand positioning and everyday time pressures make grossing one of the most vulnerable steps in your workflow, how subtle ventilation failures escape notice, and why safety at the bench is inseparable from ergonomics and layout. Discover how treating grossing environments with strategic attention directly protects your personnel while securing overall turnaround time and diagnostic quality.