Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technologists

• Summary

• Details

Work Activities

• Operate, calibrate, or maintain equipment used in quantitative or qualitative analysis, such as spectrophotometers, calorimeters, flame photometers, or computer-controlled analyzers.
• Provide technical information about test results to physicians, family members, or researchers.
• Enter data from analysis of medical tests or clinical results into computer for storage.
• Establish or monitor quality assurance programs or activities to ensure the accuracy of laboratory results.
• Conduct chemical analysis of body fluids, including blood, urine, or spinal fluid, to determine presence of normal or abnormal components.
• Operate, calibrate, or maintain equipment used in quantitative or qualitative analysis, such as spectrophotometers, calorimeters, flame photometers, or computer-controlled analyzers.
• Obtain, cut, stain, and mount biological material on slides for microscopic study and diagnosis, following standard laboratory procedures.
• Cultivate, isolate, or assist in identifying microbial organisms or perform various tests on these microorganisms.
• Set up, clean, and maintain laboratory equipment.
• Select and prepare specimens and media for cell cultures, using aseptic technique and knowledge of medium components and cell requirements.
• Collect and study blood samples to determine the number of cells, their morphology, or their blood group, blood type, or compatibility for transfusion purposes, using microscopic techniques.
• Harvest cell cultures at optimum time, based on knowledge of cell cycle differences and culture conditions.
• Cultivate, isolate, or assist in identifying microbial organisms or perform various tests on these microorganisms.
• Analyze laboratory findings to check the accuracy of the results.
• Supervise, train, or direct lab assistants, medical and clinical laboratory technicians or technologists, or other medical laboratory workers engaged in laboratory testing.
• Supervise, train, or direct lab assistants, medical and clinical laboratory technicians or technologists, or other medical laboratory workers engaged in laboratory testing.
• Analyze samples of biological material for chemical content or reaction.
• Set up, clean, and maintain laboratory equipment.
• Cultivate, isolate, or assist in identifying microbial organisms or perform various tests on these microorganisms.
• Set up, clean, and maintain laboratory equipment.
• Obtain, cut, stain, and mount biological material on slides for microscopic study and diagnosis, following standard laboratory procedures.
• Develop, standardize, evaluate, or modify procedures, techniques, or tests used in the analysis of specimens or in medical laboratory experiments.
• Collect and study blood samples to determine the number of cells, their morphology, or their blood group, blood type, or compatibility for transfusion purposes, using microscopic techniques.
• Provide technical information about test results to physicians, family members, or researchers.

Skills

• Speaking
  • Talking to others.
• Time Management
  • Managing your time and the time of other people.
• Active Listening
  • Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
• Service Orientation
  • Looking for ways to help people.
• Critical Thinking
  • Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
• Writing
  • Writing things for co-workers or customers.
• Monitoring
  • Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
• Reading Comprehension
  • Reading work-related information.
• Programming
  • Writing computer programs.
• Judgment and Decision Making
  • Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
• Persuasion
  • Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
• Management of Material Resources
  • Managing equipment and materials.
• Coordination
  • Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
• Troubleshooting
  • Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
• Social Perceptiveness
  • Understanding people's reactions.
• Operations Analysis
  • Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
• Equipment Maintenance
  • Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
• Learning Strategies
  • Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
• Mathematics
  • Using math to solve problems.
• Management of Financial Resources
  • Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
• Negotiation
  • Bringing people together to solve differences.
• Quality Control Analysis
  • Testing how well a product or service works.
• Systems Evaluation
  • Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
• Active Learning
  • Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
• Instructing
  • Teaching people how to do something.
• Repairing
  • Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
• Operations Monitoring
  • Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
• Systems Analysis
  • Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
• Technology Design
  • Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
• Installation
  • Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
• Management of Personnel Resources
  • Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
• Complex Problem Solving
  • Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
• Operation and Control
  • Using equipment or systems.
• Science
  • Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
• Equipment Selection
  • Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.

Abilities

• Reaction Time
  • Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
• Control Precision
  • Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
• Speed of Limb Movement
  • Quickly moving your arms and legs.
• Information Ordering
  • Ordering or arranging things.
• Explosive Strength
  • Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
• Stamina
  • Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
• Glare Sensitivity
  • Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
• Sound Localization
  • Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
• Speech Recognition
  • Recognizing spoken words.
• Speech Clarity
  • Speaking clearly.
• Response Orientation
  • Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
• Fluency of Ideas
  • Coming up with lots of ideas.
• Originality
  • Creating new and original ideas.
• Number Facility
  • Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
• Inductive Reasoning
  • Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
• Flexibility of Closure
  • Seeing hidden patterns.
• Dynamic Strength
  • Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
• Trunk Strength
  • Using your lower back and stomach.
• Extent Flexibility
  • Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
• Gross Body Coordination
  • Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
• Night Vision
  • Seeing at night or under low light.
• Peripheral Vision
  • Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
• Multilimb Coordination
  • Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
• Mathematical Reasoning
  • Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
• Visualization
  • Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
• Rate Control
  • Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
• Finger Dexterity
  • Putting together small parts with your fingers.
• Time Sharing
  • Doing two or more things at the same time.
• Written Comprehension
  • Reading and understanding what is written.
• Oral Expression
  • Communicating by speaking.
• Written Expression
  • Communicating by writing.
• Category Flexibility
  • Grouping things in different ways.
• Spatial Orientation
  • Knowing where things are around you.
• Deductive Reasoning
  • Using rules to solve problems.
• Manual Dexterity
  • Holding or moving items with your hands.
• Static Strength
  • Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
• Selective Attention
  • Paying attention to something without being distracted.
• Wrist-Finger Speed
  • Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
• Problem Sensitivity
  • Noticing when problems happen.
• Memorization
  • Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
• Oral Comprehension
  • Listening and understanding what people say.
• Perceptual Speed
  • Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
• Speed of Closure
  • Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
• Arm-Hand Steadiness
  • Keeping your arm or hand steady.
• Dynamic Flexibility
  • Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
• Gross Body Equilibrium
  • Keeping your balance or staying upright.
• Near Vision
  • Seeing details up close.
• Far Vision
  • Seeing details that are far away.
• Visual Color Discrimination
  • Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
• Depth Perception
  • Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
• Hearing Sensitivity
  • Telling the difference between sounds.
• Auditory Attention
  • Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.

Knowledge

• Fine Arts
  • Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
• Foreign Language
  • Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
• Education and Training
  • Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
• Food Production
  • Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
• Customer and Personal Service
  • Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
• Building and Construction
  • Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
• Biology
  • Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
• Production and Processing
  • Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
• Sociology and Anthropology
  • Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
• Medicine and Dentistry
  • Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
• Law and Government
  • Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
• Public Safety and Security
  • Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
• History and Archeology
  • Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
• Administrative
  • Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
• Sales and Marketing
  • Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
• Engineering and Technology
  • Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
• English Language
  • Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
• Geography
  • Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
• Communications and Media
  • Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
• Philosophy and Theology
  • Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
• Transportation
  • Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
• Mathematics
  • Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
• Chemistry
  • Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
• Design
  • Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
• Psychology
  • Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
• Therapy and Counseling
  • Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
• Telecommunications
  • Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
• Personnel and Human Resources
  • Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
• Administration and Management
  • Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
• Mechanical
  • Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
• Economics and Accounting
  • Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
• Computers and Electronics
  • Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
• Physics
  • Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.

Education

Education

Bachelor's degree

Work Experience

No work experience

Training

No on-the-job training

Education and Training Opportunities

×

Education and Training Opportunities

• Seattle University
  900 Broadway, Seattle WA 98122-4340
  School Type

  Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above

  Admissions
  School Size

  5,000 - 9,999

  Financial Aid 206-296-6000
  Other Degrees Offered

  Undergraduate degree or certificate offering,Graduate degree or certificate offering
  Website

  http://www.seattleu.edu/
  Program Name
  Cytotechnology/Cytotechnologist
  Length
  4 years
  Award Level
  Bachelor's degree
  Save
  Program Name
  Clinical Laboratory Science/Medical Technology/Technologist
  Length
  4 years
  Award Level
  Bachelor's degree
  Save

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• University of Washington-Seattle Campus
  1400 NE Campus Parkway, Seattle WA 98195-4550
  School Type

  Public, 4-year or above

  Admissions
  School Size

  20,000 and above

  Financial Aid 206-543-2100
  Other Degrees Offered

  Undergraduate degree or certificate offering,Graduate degree or certificate offering
  Website

  https://www.washington.edu/
  Program Name
  Clinical Laboratory Science/Medical Technology/Technologist
  Length
  More than 4 years
  Award Level
  Master's degree, Bachelor's degree
  Save

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Close

Pay

Washington Annual Salary

68650/yr

Washington Hourly Wage

33.01/hr

Washington Employment Trends

Currently Employed

7,750

Yearly Projected Openings

630

Personality

Investigative: People interested in this work like activities that include ideas, thinking, and figuring things out. They do well at jobs that need:

• Achievement Orientation
• Intellectual Curiosity
• Cautiousness
• Integrity
• Attention to Detail
• Dependability

Tools

• Anaerobic jars or accessories
• Analytical balances
• Bench refractometers or polarimeters
• Benchtop centrifuges
• Binocular light compound microscopes
• Blood bank analyzers
• Blood bank cell washers
• Blood collection needle holders
• Blood collection needles
• Blood collection syringes
• Calorimeters
• Capillary or hematocrit tubes
• Chemistry analyzers
• Chromatographic detectors
• Coagulation analyzers
• Colorimeters
• Compact disc CD or labeling printers
• Desktop computers
• Dropping pipettes
• Electrolyte analyzers
• Electronic multichannel pipetters
• Extracting equipment for laboratories
• Fluorescent microscopes
• Forced air or mechanical convection general purpose incubators
• Fume hoods or cupboards
• Gel documentation systems
• Glucose monitors or meters
• Hemacytometer sets
• Hematology analyzers
• Histology tissue cassettes
• Hypodermic needle
• Immunology or serology test kits or supplies
• Laboratory balances
• Laboratory chillers
• Laboratory diluters
• Laboratory mechanical convection ovens
• Laboratory mixers
• Laboratory vacuum pumps
• Laminar flow cabinets or stations
• Lancets
• Laser printers
• Liquid scintillation counters
• Manual multichannel air displacement pipetters
• Manual or electronic hematology differential cell counters
• Manual single channel air displacement pipetters
• Microbiology analyzers
• Microcentrifuges
• Micrometers
• Microplate readers
• Microplate washers
• Microscope slides
• Multipurpose or general test tubes
• Multiwell plates
• Notebook computers
• Osmometers
• Personal computers
• Petri plates or dishes
• Phlebotomy trays or accessories
• Photo attachments for microscopes
• Photometer
• Pipetter inserts or accessories
• Platelet mixers
• Robotic or automated liquid handling systems
• Specialty plates for bacteria
• Spectrometers
• Spectrophotometers
• Steam autoclaves or sterilizers
• Stereo or dissecting light microscopes
• Surgical instrument brushes or instrument stylets or instrument wipes
• Temperature cycling chambers or thermal cyclers
• Tissue culture coated plates or dishes or inserts
• Tissue embedding stations
• Tissue processors
• Tourniquets
• Triple beam balances
• Tube rotators
• Ultracentrifuges
• Urinalysis analyzers
• Vacuum blood collection tubes or containers
• Warming cabinets
• Winged infusion needle set
• pH meters

Technology

• Data base user interface and query software
• Electronic mail software
• Medical software
• Office suite software
• Presentation software
• Project management software
• Spreadsheet software
• Word processing software