Melissa A. Steele, BS, MT (ASCP), CHT (ACHI), is the manager of the Histocompatibility Laboratory at UofL Health – Trager Transplant Center in UofL Health – Jewish Hospital. In July 2024, Melissa will celebrate working at UofL Health for 35 years.
“I started as a generalist, working in all areas of the laboratory on second shift,” she said. “I moved to the ‘Tissue Typing Lab’ in 1990. Tissue Typing (now known as Histocompatibility) was a new field in laboratory science so there was no formal education in college pertaining to it. The labs across the country met regularly to collaborate on best practices. The results of our tests helped to guide the transplant teams to know which patient would be compatible with the organ. It was very cutting edge and exciting to be part of the team. I was part of several firsts here, for example, liver transplants, hand transplants and combined organ transplants to name a few. The field has advanced greatly since those early years.”
As the manager of the high complexity Histocompatibility Laboratory, Melissa helps to support the Trager Transplant Center’s heart, lung, liver, kidney, pancreas and hand transplant programs. The Histocompatibility Laboratory also supports the Kentucky Organ Donor Affiliates by performing human leukocyte antigen (HLA) typing on deceased donors in Kentucky, southern Indiana, and West Virginia, and supports the heart and kidney transplant programs at Norton Children’s Hospital. Additionally, Melissa and her team also help educate pathology residents and transfusion medicine fellows in the Histocompatibility field while they are completing clinical rotations.
Melissa’s favorite thing about UofL Health is being part of a team. She also feels she helps make a difference in patients’ lives. Melissa lives out UofL Health’s mission in her role by always thinking of patients first and looking at what can be improved.
“In my career I have been in quite a few certain circumstances that impacted patients greatly for the better,” she said. “That truly is a great feeling. During my career I feel that I have helped to save lives.”
Melissa’s goal for UofL Health is for the system to improve quality and communication by determining what team members can improve on and what they can put in place to catch errors before they reach a patient.
Melissa loves the outdoors. She grew up with a big family on an 80-acre farm in Elizabeth, Ind. Her family raised beef and pork and planted corn, soybeans and tobacco on the farm, while also maintaining a large garden.
“I was never alone,” Melissa said. “My parents worked hard their entire life and taught us to do the same. I was driving tractors at a very young age to help. My summer job when I was a sophomore in college was helping my dad build a 40-acre fence.”
Melissa graduated from South Central High School in Elizabeth and the University of Evansville. Her interests include golf, walking and watching sports. Melissa’s favorite vacation spot is Florida, along State Road 30A.
Melissa’s pet peeve is when people do not take ownership of their mistakes, because then they cannot learn from them. She has several pieces of wisdom to live by, including: “Moderation is the key to life!”, “Body in motion stays in motion!”, “How do you want to be remembered?” and “Always assume positive intent.”
