Lab Girl

This chapter explores Jahren’s experience working in a hospital pharmacy while she is an undergraduate at the University of Minnesota. At first, she is a “runner” (32), carrying medication from the pharmacy to the patient or departments who need it. She is later promoted to “shoot bags” (36), which entails mixing drugs in intravenous bags. An older woman named Lydia, who is a “lifer” (37) in the pharmacy, teaches Jahren about the medications and procedures in the pharmacy.

Jahren narrates the process of mixing a bag, which includes disinfecting the workspace, receiving an order form, mixing the requisite chemicals in the bag, and signing off on the finished product. At first, Jahren finds this process stressful, noting: “We are constantly reminded that any mistake we make could kill someone” (43). On her first day, Jahren makes a couple of mistakes, including mixing a “benzo bag” improperly and contaminating a bottle of interferon.

After a few months, she becomes proficient at her job and soon mixes bags as quickly as Lydia. On her down time, Jahren visits the blood bank to see if they need her to carry any to the emergency room. There she meets Claude, who develops a crush on her.