A medical laboratory technologist is essentially a part of the
health-care profession. Their job is to perform laboratory analysis and
furnish the information to the physicians. Sometimes, a doctor is
accompanied by a medical laboratory technologist, who assists him in
diagnosing and treating the patients. At times, the technologist even
helps in preventing the disease and monitors the condition of the
patient. The service of a laboratory technologist is very crucial when
it comes to proper treatment of a patient.
The Job Of Medical Laboratory Technologists (MLTs)
The
main job of a medical laboratory technologist is to handle a number of
complicated machines all at a time. They should have excellent skills,
such as, hand eye coordination, motor skills and manual dexterity. They
must have the ability to take care of the minute details of the subtle
changes to any microscopic objects, such as tissues, blood and
bacterial cells.
However, obtaining results is not the only
job of an MLT. He has to prove the authenticity and the validity of the
report and for the same; he should make critical and analytical
scrutinization of the report. Besides, he should posses the virtues of
patience and dexterity. Communication skills should be vivid and
comprehensible.
The Demand Of MLTs
Science is
now more advanced and therefore the roles of the laboratory
technologists are getting more complicated. As new discoveries are
being made everyday, a medical laboratory technologist is required to
watch out for new developments. They must also make the utmost efforts
from their end to contribute for the development of medical science –
say for evolving newer and better methods of diagnosing complicated
health problems, such as, cancer and genetic disorders.
Variety
is the basis of work in a laboratory. The MLTs have to perform tests in
various disciplines and, therefore, they meet new challenges and
assorted career options. Job-satisfaction is the key word for a Medical
Laboratory Technologist.
A Medical Laboratory Technologist
can enjoy expanding roles. “Point of care” testing is now a very common
sight in many hospitals. To ensure faster testing and uninterrupted
monitoring, the monitors are now mostly placed beside the patient.
Nonetheless, a medical laboratory technologist can enjoy the scope of
working independently, without the interference of a third party.
A
MLT has many career options. He/she can find challenging jobs in arenas
like, physician’s office, hospitals, private laboratories, public
health laboratories, sales and marketing, consulting, research and
product development, education, technical support, supervision or
administration or management, public health or infection control,
forensic biological sciences and many more.
The Qualification Of Medical Laboratory Technologist
To
qualify as an MLT, the aspiring student should earn a bachelor’s degree
with major in medical technology or the student should earn a four-year
degree in Life science, but the certification must come from an
accredited training program.