Route of Entry

Most Medical Technologists got into the profession through the traditional route of going to college, be it a four year college  or the most common two year college of today. Yet there are a great number who were grandfathered into their med tech position through on the job training. I have met professionals who are excellent techs through this route. So how did you become a med tech. Care to share?

I got in through the traditional four year college where I majored in Clinical Laboratory Sciences. Passed through a six to eight months of clinical training in a hospital, enrolled and passed my board exam, then got a job. Please tell us your story.

Definition of Terms

Medical Technologists work in the clinical laboratory. They run the blood tests that help the Physician diagnose an illness or disease. The field of Medical Technology is rather broad and encompasses all areas in the laboratory such as Clinical Chemistry, Clinical Hematology, Clinical Immunology, Blood Banking, Clinical Microbiology, Molecular Diagnostics, Cytogenetics, Cytology, Histotechnology, Tissue Typing, Flow Cytometry, Phlebotomy, Coagulation, and Urinalysis. Some work in research, educational settings, but most work in the tradional setting of the laboratory.

In this blog, the term "Medical Technologist" shall refer to all professionals that work in the various labs in the clinical setting be it in the hospital or reference labs, research or in education. The term shall include anyone who performs performs laboratory tests on patient samples and releases and documents those results into computer system.

This is a blog created by a med tech for med techs. So leave a comment or two and tell us about your experiences, frustrations, areas of growth. Also tell us about what you do, what you like about your job and what you like less about it.