Medical Lab Technician

Program Description

Employers continue to seek better thinkers, superior problem-solvers and team players with a strong customer orientation. The Miami-Jacobs’ graduate will have a competitive edge because of the specialized method in which he or she has been trained. Miami-Jacobs’ graduates will have developed strong leadership skills and understand how to influence others positively.

Occupational Objectives

Graduates of this program will be prepared for careers as any of the following: medical lab technician; phlebotomist; molecular biology technologist; Cytotechnologist; clinical laboratory technologist; blood bank technologists; immunology technologists; immunohematology technologists; or a variety of other related positions.

Occupational Skills

• Prepare clients for testing and educating the client
• Perform medical tests accurately and safely
• Chart results of tests
• Analyze the results of tests
• Analyze data and make logical decisions
• Prepare detailed reports
• Communicate effectively with clients, co-workers, and supervisors

The following from Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2010-11 Edition

Nature of the Work

Clinical laboratory testing plays a crucial role in the detection, diagnosis, and treatment of disease. Clinical laboratory technologists, also referred to as clinical laboratory scientists or medical technologists, and clinical laboratory technicians, also known as medical technicians or medical laboratory technicians, perform most of these tests.

Clinical laboratory personnel examine and analyze body fluids, and cells. They look for bacteria, parasites, and other microorganisms; analyze the chemical content of fluids; match blood for transfusions; and test for drug levels in the blood that show how a patient is responding to treatment. Technologists also prepare specimens for examination, count cells, and look for abnormal cells in blood and body fluids. They use microscopes, cell counters, and other sophisticated laboratory equipment. They also use automated equipment and computerized instruments capable of performing a number of tests simultaneously. After testing and examining a specimen, they analyze the results and relay them to physicians.

With increasing automation and the use of computer technology, the work of technologists and technicians has become less hands-on and more analytical. The complexity of tests performed, the level of judgment needed, and the amount of responsibility workers assume depend largely on the amount of education and experience they have. Clinical laboratory technologists usually do more complex tasks than clinical laboratory technicians do.

Clinical laboratory technologists perform complex chemical, biological, hematological, immunologic, microscopic, and bacteriological tests. Technologists microscopically examine blood and other body fluids. They make cultures of body fluid and tissue samples, to determine the presence of bacteria, fungi, parasites, or other microorganisms. Technologists analyze samples for chemical content or a chemical reaction and determine concentrations of compounds such as blood glucose and cholesterol levels. They also type and cross match blood samples for transfusions.

Clinical laboratory technologists evaluate test results, develop and modify procedures, and establish and monitor programs, to ensure the accuracy of tests. Some technologists supervise clinical laboratory technicians.

Technologists in small laboratories perform many types of tests, whereas those in large laboratories generally specialize. Clinical chemistry technologists, for example, prepare specimens and analyze the chemical and hormonal contents of body fluids. Microbiology technologists examine and identify bacteria and other microorganisms. Blood bank technologists, or immunohematology technologists, collect, type, and prepare blood and its components for transfusions. Immunology technologists examine elements of the human immune system and its response to foreign bodies. Cytotechnologists prepare slides of body cells and examine these cells microscopically for abnormalities that may signal the beginning of a cancerous growth. Molecular biology technologists perform complex protein and nucleic acid testing on cell samples.

Clinical laboratory technicians perform less complex tests and laboratory procedures than technologists do. Technicians may prepare specimens and operate automated analyzers, for example, or they may perform manual tests in accordance with detailed instructions. They usually work under the supervision of medical and clinical laboratory technologists or laboratory managers. Like technologists, clinical laboratory technicians may work in several areas of the clinical laboratory or specialize in just one. Phlebotomists collect blood samples, for example, and histotechnicians cut and stain tissue specimens for microscopic examination by pathologists.

Job Outlook

Rapid job growth and excellent job opportunities are expected. Most jobs will continue to be in hospitals, but employment will grow rapidly in other settings, as well.

Employment change. Employment of clinical laboratory workers is expected to grow by 14 percent between 2008 and 2018, faster than the average for all occupations. The volume of laboratory tests continues to increase with both population growth and the development of new types of tests.

Technological advances will continue to have opposing effects on employment. On the one hand, new, increasingly powerful diagnostic tests and advances in genomics—the study of the genetic information of a cell or organism—will encourage additional testing and spur employment. On the other hand, research and development efforts targeted at simplifying and automating routine testing procedures may enhance the ability of nonlaboratory personnel—physicians and patients in particular—to perform tests now conducted in laboratories.

Although hospitals are expected to continue to be the major employer of clinical laboratory workers, employment is expected also to grow rapidly in medical and diagnostic laboratories, offices of physicians, and all other ambulatory healthcare services.

Job prospects. Job opportunities are expected to be excellent because the number of job openings is expected to continue to exceed the number of jobseekers. Although significant, job growth will not be the only source of opportunities. As in most occupations, many additional openings will result from the need to replace workers who transfer to other occupations, retire, or stop working for some other reason. Willingness to relocate will further enhance one’s job prospects.

Earnings

Median annual wages of medical and clinical laboratory technologists were $53,500 in May 2008. The middle 50 percent earned between $44,560 and $63,420. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $36,180, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $74,680. Median annual wages in the industries employing the largest numbers of medical and clinical laboratory technologists were:

Federal Executive Branch $59,800 General medical and surgical hospitals 54,220 Medical and diagnostic laboratories 53,360 Offices of physicians 49,080 Colleges, universities, and professional schools 47,890

Median annual wages of medical and clinical laboratory technicians were $35,380 in May 2008. The middle 50 percent earned between $28,420 and $44,310. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $23,480, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $53,520. Median annual wages in the industries employing the largest numbers of medical and clinical laboratory technicians were:

General medical and surgical hospitals $36,840 Colleges, universities, and professional schools 36,290 Offices of physicians 33,980 Medical and diagnostic laboratories 32,630 Other ambulatory health care services 31,320

According to the American Society for Clinical Pathology, median hourly wages of staff clinical laboratory technologists and technicians, in various specialties and laboratory types, in 2007 were:

Specialty Hospital Private clinic Physician office laboratory Cytotechnologist $27.55 $28.75 $26.24 Histotechnologist 22.93 23.35 25.00 Medical technologist 23.45 23.00 20.00 Histotechnician 20.00 20.00 21.00 Medical laboratory technician 18.54 17.00 16.96 Phlebotomist 12.50 12.50 13.00