Assignment: Health Care Careers

Assignment: Health Care Careers

Job Description

A medical technologist also referred to as a clinical laboratory technologist, is a health care professional whose duty involves collecting samples, performing tests and analyzing fluids, blood, and tissues. They study these samples and record findings either normal or abnormal. They also study several cells in a blood sample, the morphology, blood type and group, and compatibility with other blood groups to come up with blood samples for transfusion purposes (Oster et al., 2021). They mainly operate on microscopes, cell counters, and automated and computerized equipment to perform multiple tests at once. They perform procedures and tests ordered by doctors, physicians, surgeons, or other health care personnel.

Their scope of practice is stated in The Medical Laboratory Technology Act, 1991, as “The practice of medical laboratory technology is the performance of laboratory investigations on the human body or specimens taken from the body and the evaluation of technical sufficiency of the investigations and their results.'' The code of ethics for this health care profession include; an obligation to patients, the public, the profession, the regulatory body, and oneself. Medical technologists shall protect and respect the confidentiality of patients and value and respect and protect the dignity and rights of all patients by providing human rights services regardless of race, ethnicity, age, socio-economic status, sex, or mental or physical abilities. They shall obtain informed consent from a patient before taking any action and maintain professional boundaries (Guerrero, 2021). Medical technologists shall practice according to an institution's safety guidelines, established protocols, and policies. They shall also be responsible and accountable for their actions and practice within their scope of practice and competence.

Education/Registration/ Certification

The minimum educational requirement for a medical technologist is a bachelor's degree in medical laboratory technology from a recognized institution. Armed forces and vocational-technical centers offer certificate programs. To pursue this career, one should take biology, chemistry, and math classes in high school. Educational institutions offering this program include Murray State University and Campbellsville University. The average time to complete a bachelor's degree in this program is five years. However, most bachelor programs take four years, and some students may take a shorter period by taking extra units each semester (Yang et al., 2018).

The approximate cost for a degree program at Murray State University is 9,168USD for local tuition and 18,348USD for domestic tuition, while Campbellsville University is approximately 25,400USD. The minimum certification can be earned for medical technology medical or science-related bachelor's degree and at least one year of experience in medical laboratory technology. The American Medical Technologists provide certification exams for licensure and automatic registration after they have passed the exams in the American Medical Technologists database and later they obtain a Medical Laboratory Technologist certification.

Job Outlook and Employment

Today, there is a high demand for medical technologists locally and abroad. According to statistics, the demand for MLT in the US has grown up to 22%. The growth rate of this profession has been variable since 2010, with a growth rate ranging from 2%-8%. However, the growth rate globally is expected to be at 5% by the end of 2022. The annual growth rate in 2021 was 5.2%. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics US, the number of jobs advertised in 2020 was 335,500.

 A bachelor's degree in medical technology is required for a medical technologist position and 2 years of experience alongside a valid state certification and licensing. Also, an individual should be highly organized to detail since clinical, biological and chemical tests require detailed analysis to make a diagnosis. On average, the entry-level salary for a medical technologist is $2,801 per month, while an experienced medical technologist earns $7,002 per month. Advancement opportunities available for this career include a chief technologist, supervisor, laboratory manager, or health care administrator.

Professional Activities

The American Society for Clinical Laboratory Science (ASCLS) is a professional organization for medical laboratory technologists (Koo, 2019). The cost of joining ASCLS as a student is $26, all packages inclusive of state dues. The professional journal; Clinical Laboratory Science is $18 for single copies. Continuing Educational Units are required for this profession. Medical technologists are required to fulfill 24 hours approved by the board of continuing education requirements during the two-year calendar cycle previous to license renewal (Yang et al., 2018).

Health Care Professional Interview

I interviewed a medical technologist who described the career as a broad field involving immunology, hematology, toxicology, genetics, microbiology, and blood banking. He describes his typical day at work to be involving diagnostic procedures hence the need to pay key attention to details. Moreover, he describes it to be mainly involving the application of theoretical components of medical technology. He advised me as I enter the profession to ensure that I acquire the knowledge, skills and judgment required to be a medical technologist. He also insisted on displaying integrity, respect, and collaboration with all health care professionals and focusing on quality.

Reflection

As I reflect on how I see myself fitting into this profession, my attributes are to carry out professional requirements with competency and integrity and respect the patients' welfare in providing services. I will dedicate this career to serving the public's health needs while respecting and ensuring cooperative interactions with the public, patients, and other health care providers. I will practice by the guidelines and protocols provided by the regulatory body. My experiences regarding this profession include preparing specimens to analyze chemical and hormonal components in body fluids and examining slides of body cells for abnormalities. I would also like to specialize as a histotechnician to stain and examine various tissue specimens for pathologists.

My goals and objectives are to ensure that I place the patients' welfare above my needs, maintain dignity and integrity for my profession and demonstrate an application of the ethical principles of medical technologists. My strategies to achieve this will involve creating awareness to medical technologists on ethical considerations to ensure quality services to all patients. Also, improving laboratory services access, ensuring equal distribution of medical resources, and altering conditions were necessary to advance patients' best interests is another strategy to quality service provision.  

References

 GUERRERO, C. R. (2021). The Changing Role of the Medical Technologist. Academia Letters.

Koo, B. K. (2019). Professional certification of medical technologists in Korea, Japan, and the United States of America. Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science, 51(1), 1-14.

 Oster, N. V., Grace Guenther, M. P. A., Frogner, B. K., & Skillman, S. M. (2021). The Clinical Laboratory Workforce in the US.

Sung, H. H. (2020). Study on the professionalism of medical technologists' work in health examination centers: focusing on general examinations. Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science, 52(3), 271-277.

Yang, B. S., Choi, S. M., Shim, M. J., Kim, C. H., Bae, H. J., Yook, K. D., ... & Lee, S. H. (2018). Study on the education curriculum and clinical practice of medical technologists. Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science, 50(3), 320-330.