HANDLING BODY FLUIDS AND TISSUES

Laboratory Careers

This video talks about what types of samples are look at in the laboratory and what the technician is expected to do.
They discuss how a lab technician handles body tissue and fluids from individuals. It portrays a realistic expectation of how tests are actually performed in the laboratory.

 .

AMERICAN MEDICAL TECHNICIANS

This website has information for certification for medical laboratory technicians.

It is important to realize that you must be certified in some states. If you are certified, you will have more employment opportunities. Before you spend time working on a degree, explore whether you feel you can accomplish becoming a certified technician.

This is a good place to start to understand the certifications process. This is not a complicated website.


http://www.americanmedtech.org/GetCertified/MLTEligibility.aspx#142383-route-1-education

LAB TECHNICIANS SAVE BABY'S LIFE

In March of this year a baby was saved by dedicated lab technicians.

This news clip shows how dedicated lab technicians take their job. They realize that the work they do directly impacts the lives of people. A winter storm was moving in so transportation and delivery services were shutting down. The lab workers went out of their way to collect sample that needed to be processed. After picking the samples up themselves, they ran the test. A positive result came up for one of the babies. This result was a rare disease that was life threatening. They were able to contact the parents in time with the information.

This piece shows how important a laboratory technicians job is. As you can see in the video, these workers are very dedicated and the work they do does affect lives. It shows that being a lab worker can be a satisfying job.

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/infant-rare-disorder-saved-lab-tech-braves-boston/story?id=29782735

CAREERS IN THE LAB

What's laboratory service all about?

This is a well written piece providing information about laboratory technicinans.

This aritcle has a downloadable pdf file with detialed inforamtion of several jobs that are part of the in the laboratory. It breaks down the perks of the job, job requirements, and job salaries of each position in the lab.

You can download the pdf onto your device for future reference. There are links to websites which will provide additional information. I have copy and pasted some of them.



National Accrediting Agency for Clinical Laboratory Science
http://www.naacls.org/

Clinical Laboratory Management Association
http://www.clma.org/p/cm/ld/fid=62

American Society for Clinical Pathology
http://www.ascp.org/







http://www.johnmuirhealth.com/get-involved/careers/career-education/career-education-laboratory-services.html

LAB TECHNICIANS TALK ABOUT THEIR DAY

A Day in the Life: Medical lab Technician

This article is from the Atkins Children Center. They have employees talk about what they do everyday and what happens on the job.

This is article give a human face to the job of lab technician. The talk in detail about what it is like to work in a hospital laboratory.

I think reading articles like this can help you decide if the job is one that you really would like doing. I like that they give small details of what goes on.








http://inside.akronchildrens.org/2013/04/23/a-day-in-the-life-medical-lab-technician/

PROS AND CONS OF LAB TECHNICIANS

Becoming a Lab Technician: Job Description and Salary Info

The Pros and Cons of a Lab Technician Career

     This website, learningpath.org covers the pros and cons of the job, career information, requirements, standing out, and alternatives tabs that explore each subject.

     This is a must read with some wonderful information that is thought provoking. The tabs on job requirements and how to stand out are worth reading. This article provides alternate considerations for similar careers.

http://learningpath.org/articles/Becoming_a_Lab_Technician_Job_Description_Salary_Info.html

GREAT SITE PROVIDING INFORMATION ON WORKING IN A LAB

Medical Laboratory Technicians.

This is a great site with pros cons and a verdict on working in a medical laboratory as technicians.

Someone took a lot of time making this article. If you like charts, this is the one to check out. There are breakdowns and percentage on educational requirements, job availability, work environment, and medical laboratory technologist summary. Click on the "compare" drop down boxes. This is fun to look at.

I like this site, it is very different and informative. You can look at different jobs and compare all of them at once. If you have a particular job in mind, you can see how it stacks up against others.





http://medical-careers-review.toptenreviews.com/medical-laboratory-technologists-review.html

NASTY NEGATIVE SIDE OF WORKING IN A LABORATORY

The pros and cons for careers in biology

This article covers the very real dangers and negative aspects of working in a laboratory.

There is some good information to consider in this article. Before you start to spend money on a degree in this field, consider the negative aspects. If you are sensitive to chemicals and have allergies this might not be the job for you. There is a real danger of being exposed to toxic chemicals and hazardous materials.

This is an excellent pierce that you must read if considering a career as a laboratory technician. This article also gives salary information and the job outlook. This rounds the article out balancing the good with the bad aspects of the job.




http://work.chron.com/pros-cons-careers-biology-17965.html

TOP 10 WORST THINGS ABOUT WORKING IN A LAB

A LIGHT HEARTED VIEW OF THE DOWNSIDE

This is an article written with a bit of humor, about the negative side working in the lab.

This article is written with humor, but there is a truth to what he writes. The laboratory is not really a fun place to work unless you really like what you do.

People don't often talk about the negative side of a job. Even thought it is written in fun, you really have to consider the negative side of the job. These jobs usually pay well for the time it takes to obtain a degree, and there is potential for advancement.




http://sciencecareers.sciencemag.org/career_magazine/previous_issues/articles/2012_01_27/caredit.a1200012

ONLINE OPTIONS TO OBTAINING A DEGREE

Online Biology Associates Degrees Program with Overviews

This article discusses what online options you have if you want an associates degree in biology.

This article covers what you can do to get an associates degree in biology if you can't attend a college campus. It covers online labs, learning methods, and courses. It discusses the reality that you can not get a degree entirely online, because you must attend labs on campus.

This article brings up a subject that is not usually covered when you are looking at different colleges and their campuses.I am up against this dilemma of how to complete my degree. I am beginning to take courses on campus in biology. There are some useful links at the bottom of the page that you can explore. The link for the online biology major requirements is a good link to look at.

 http://study.com/online_biology_associate%27s_degrees.html

GO GET THAT JOB!

Clinical Laboratory Technician: Reviews and Advice

      This is a piece published in the U.S. News and World Report: Money. It is a review and report on Clinical Laboratory Technicians.

      This article covers how to get a job as a clinical laboratory technician and also has questions to ask on an interview. It covers what the job is like and a link to salaries.

      This article has some very good thought provoking questions to ask when seeking a job. It is a good read to understand what capabilities are needed to hold this position as well as a link on interview tips. Different than your average given information.

Please follow the link. I was unable to embed a link.

http://money.usnews.com/careers/best-jobs/clinical-laboratory-technician/reviews

WHERE TO FIND THAT JOB!

There are different types of medical laboratory jobs.

If  you want to work in the medical field, but don't want direct contact with patients, working as a laboratory technician is the way to go.

Check out this website! It has information on what you would be dealing with on the job as a medical laboratory technician. Good overview of what you would do and where you would work.

This is a very short article, however, there are several links at the bottom of the page for additional information on related positions.





http://healthcareers.about.com/od/wheretowork/p/MedLabCareers.htm

LABS ARE EQUIPPED TO DO SPECIFIC JOBS

This is a molecular biology laboratory.



The equipment in a laboratory will be particular to they type of work you will be producing. Chemical labs and biology labs will look very different.


Lab technician using paint brush with medical samples.

THE JOB OUTLOOK

How many medical and clinical laboratory technologists and technicians jobs are there? 

This webpage is the United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics website. It provides an array of information on many types of jobs. 

This website is useful in finding the salaries for laboratory technicians as well as many other types of jobs.

The job outlook information should be part of your decision whenever you are considering obtaining a degree in any field.

http://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/medical-and-clinical-laboratory-technologists-and-technicians.htm

Quick Facts: Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technologists and Technicians
2012 Median Pay	$47,820 per year $22.99 per hour
Entry-Level Education	See How to Become One
Work Experience in a Related Occupation	None
On-the-job Training	None
Number of Jobs, 2012	325,800
Job Outlook, 2012-22	22% (Much faster than average)
Employment Change, 2012-22	70,600

EXPLORING LABORATORY CAREERS

Clinical Laboratory Technician

http://explorehealthcareers.org/en/Career/28/Clinical_Laboratory_ScientistTechnician#Tab=Overview

This website has easy to use drop down boxes to quickly find what you are looking for. There are several types of technicians to look at.

      This article provides an overview of the job, academic requirements, and resources. There is a precise description of job duties and a resource list with useful links.
      This article explains the steps necessary to become a laboratory technician. It is the only article that I have found which talks about the certification exam needed to become a laboratory technician. Links are provided for the companies that provide certification. this website is a good starting point to explore becoming a laboratory technician.
      This article is supported by the American Dental Education Association and was updated April 16, 2015 .  

A BLOG ON MENTORING

A Laboratory technician shares his experience working with others.

This individual shares his experience working with two people he considers his first mentors.

The laboratory technician is very good at explaining why he considers these two individuals mentors. He goes into detail about working with these people. They begin to feel like people you know personally.

This is worth listening to as he explains what he has learned working in the field. He gives good insight what to expect and the different personalities that you will work with. He has a good insight of how the people interact with other people in the laboratory.

http://www.labspaces.net/blog/891/Mentoring___a_technician_s_perspective

LABORATORY TECHNICIAN IN THERE OWN WORDS

Occupational Video - Medical Laboratory Technologist

This video has a laboratory worker walk you thorough her day as if you were shadowing her. Watching videos like this one helps to understand what  a typical day would be like to be a laboratory technician. The worker really helps you get a feel for working in a laboratory. This is a particularly good video. The laboratory work not only explains what she does in the laboratory on a daily basis, she talks about the various other positions that are related to the job.

ss

PODCASTS FOR LABORATORY TECHNICIANS

This website is nicely done. There are may podcasts on this site and they are easy to find and listen to.

Career Cornerstone Center

http://www.careercornerstone.org/podcast.htm

This website provides podcasts for careers. Each podcast explains the education required, job duties, salary, and career paths

This is an easy site to navigate. The podcasts are clearly listed by topic. The podcast are informative and are updated weekly. They provide information for over 185 degrees. They currently list podcasts for: Dental, Ophthalmic, Pharmacy, Chemical, Forensics, and other technicians. If you are looking into a four year degree, they have podcasts for technologists. They have lots of information in the contacts page.

Career Cornerstone Center is a 501 (c) (3) corporation that provides information for careers in science, technology, engineering, medicine, and mathematics.

EDUCATIONAL REQUIREMENTS FOR EMPLOYMENT

Do You Have to Have a Degree to Find a Job as a Laboratory Technician?
http://work.chron.com/degree-job-laboratory-technician-15206.html

This website explains: what technicians do, what training is needed, required certification, and career outlook.

This is one of those websites that breaks down the job into separate segments. It has useful information on how to enter the field without a degree. It is emphasized that a two year degree is the best way to secure a position as a laboratory technician. Information is given on how to enter the field without a degree.

This website is published by Herst Newspaper and the article was written by Fred Decker and Demand Media.. The webpage has been updated in 2015.