medical laboratory scientist medical laboratory scientist a medical laboratory scientist (mls) or clinical laboratory scientist (cls) or medical technologist (mt) performs diagnostic testing of blood and body fluids in clinical laboratories. the scope of a medical laboratory scientist's work begins with the receipt of patient or client specimens and terminates with the delivery of test results to physicians and other healthcare providers. the utility of clinical diagnostic testing relies squarely on the validity of test methodology. to this end, much of the work done by medical laboratory scientists involves ensuring specimen quality, interpreting test results, data-logging, testing control products, performing calibration, maintenance, validation, and troubleshooting of instrumentation as well as performing statistical analyses to verify the accuracy and repeatability of testing. medical laboratory scientists may also assist healthcare providers with test selection and specimen collection and are responsible for prompt verbal delivery of critical lab results. medical laboratory scientist in health settings also play an important role in the diagnosis of diseses conditions. an estimated 70% of medical decisions are based on laboratory test results and mls contributions affect 95% of a health system's costs. mls in his work environment medical laboratory scientista medical laboratory scientist at the national institutes of health preparing dna samples.occupationnames medical laboratory scientist (mls) / clinical laboratory scientist (cls) / medical technologist (mt) doctor of medical laboratory science (dmls) / doctor of clinical laboratory science (dcls) activity sectorshealth care, research & development, allied health, biomedical researchdescriptioncompetenciesanalytical skills, quality control and knowledge of laboratory medicine and technology.education required doctor of philosophy for management/directorship roles doctor of medical laboratory sciences (dmls) for management/directorship roles master of science often for education/management roles honours degree in laboratory science (scientist) bachelor of science in medical laboratory science (scientist) doctor of medical laboratory science ( doctor or dmls ) the most common tests performed by medical laboratory scientists are complete blood count (cbc), comprehensive metabolic panel (cmp), electrolyte panel, liver function tests (lft), renal function tests (rft), thyroid function test (tft), urinalysis, coagulation profile, lipid profile, blood type, semen analysis (for fertility and post-vasectomy studies), serological studies and routine cultures. in some facilities that have few phlebotomists, or none at all, (such as in rural areas) medical laboratory scientists may perform phlebotomy. because medical laboratory scientists have many transferable technical skills, employment outside of the medical laboratory is common. many medical laboratory scientists are employed in government positions such as the fda, usda, non-medical industrial laboratories, and manufacturing. in the united kingdom and the united states, senior laboratory scientists, who are typically post-doctoral scientists, take on significantly greater clinical responsibilities in the laboratory. in the united states these scientists may function in the role of clinical laboratory directors, while in the united kingdom they are known as consultant clinical scientists. though clinical scientists have existed in the uk national health service for ~60 years, the introduction of formally-trained and accredited consultant-level clinical scientists is relatively new, and was introduced as part of the new modernising scientific careers framework. consultant clinical scientists are expected to provide expert scientific and clinical leadership alongside and, at the same level as, medical consultant colleagues. while specialists in healthcare science will follow protocols, procedures and clinical guidelines, consultant clinical scientists will help shape future guidelines and the implementation of new and emerging technologies to help advance patient care. in the united kingdom, healthcare scientists including clinical scientists may intervene throughout entire care pathways from diagnostic tests to therapeutic treatments and rehabilitation. although this workforce comprises approximately 5% of the healthcare workforce in the uk, their work underpins 80% of all diagnoses and clinical decisions made. specialty areas many medical laboratory scientists are generalists, skilled in most areas of the clinical laboratory. however, some are specialists, qualified by unique undergraduate education or additional training to perform more complex analyses than usual within a specific field. specialties include clinical biochemistry, hematology, coagulation, microbiology, bacteriology, toxicology, virology, parasitology, mycology, immunology, immunohematology (blood bank), histopathology, histocompatibility, cytopathology, genetics, cytogenetics, electron microscopy, and ivf labs. medical technologists specialty may use additional credentials, such as "sbb" (specialist in blood banking) from the american association of blood banks, "sm" (specialist in microbiology) from the american society for microbiology, "sc" (specialist in chemistry) from the american association for clinical chemistry, or "sh" (specialist in hematology) from the american society for clinical pathology (ascp). these additional notations may be appended to the base credential, for example, "mls(ascp)sbb". additional information can be found in the ascp procedures for examination & certification. andrology laboratory scientist, embryology laboratory scientist, and molecular diagnostics technologist certifications are provided by the american association of bioanalysts; those with the certifications are classified as als(aab), els(aab), and mdxt(aab) respectively. certified histocompatibility associate, certified histocompatibility technologist, certified histocompatibility specialist, and diplomate of the abhi are titles granted by the american board of hisocompatibility and immunogenetics after meeting education and experience requirements and passing the required examination; those individuals would hold the credentials cha(abhi), cht(abhi), chs(ahbi), and d(abhi) upon passing the corresponding examination. in the united states, medical laboratory scientists can be certified and employed in infection control. these professionals monitor and report infectious disease findings to help limit iatrogenic and nosocomial infections. they may also educate other healthcare workers about such problems and ways to minimize them. in the united kingdom the number of clinical scientists in a pathology discipline are typically greater, where less medically qualified pathologists train as consultants. clinical biochemistry, clinical immunology and genomic medicine are specialities with an abundance of uk clinical scientists, and where the role is well established. infection services in the united kingdom are generally undertaken by medically qualified microbiologists, who may have overall responsibility for laboratory services in addition to infection prevention and control responsibilities, and may be required to contribute to ward rounds and patient clinics. therefore, the royal college of pathologists and royal college of physicians have developed combined infection training, that medical trainees gain a much more patient focused experience, and undertake physician examinations in addition to pathology training. the result of this is that several regional medical deaneries no longer permit medical doctors to train in microbiology or virology as single disciplines, and instead advocate dual-specialisation as infectious disease/microbiology or infectious disease/virology . simultaneously the expansion of higher specialist scientist trainees in microbiology mean that many of the laboratory and scientific responsibilities of medical doctors may be taken on by clinical scientists, and medical doctors will instead be expected to perform a much more patient facing role. the exception in microbiology is the sub-discipline of virology, which is well suited to the expertise of clinical scientists due to reliance on cutting-edge scientific methods, increasing use of specialised genetic technologies, and a technical understanding of virus biology, with a reduced emphasis on patient management compared with microbiology as a whole. it is therefore likely that many patients in uk hospitals may come into contact with clinical scientists working in a patient facing speciality, who may be confused with medical doctors due to the complex nature of their role. educational requirements educational and licensing requirements vary by country due to differing scopes of practice and legislative differences. australia in australia, medical laboratory scientists complete a four-year undergraduate degree program in medical science, medical laboratory science or laboratory medicine. these programs should be accredited by the australian institute of medical and clinical scientists (aims). canada in canada, three-year college or technical school programs are offered that include seven semesters, two of them comprising an unpaid internship. the student graduates before taking a standard examination (such as the canadian society for medical laboratory science, or csmls, exam) to be qualified as a medical laboratory technologist. many mlts go on to receive a bachelor of science degree after they are certified, but a few university programs affiliated with a college mlt program to allow students to graduate with both mlt certification and a degree such as the university of new brunswick's bachelor of medical laboratory sciences program. canada is currently experiencing an increasing problem with staffing shortages in medical laboratories. new zealand in new zealand, a medical laboratory scientist must complete a bachelor's degree in medical laboratory science or biological or chemical science recognized by the medical sciences council of new zealand. as part of this degree they must complete clinical placement. once they graduate they must have worked at least six months under supervision, be registered with the medical sciences counsel of new zealand, and hold a current annual practicing certificate. ghana in ghana, a doctor of medical laboratory scientist (mls.d) is a professional with a six years professional doctorate degree in medical laboratory science, the medical laboratory scientist (mls) has four years bachelor's degree in medical laboratory science and the medical laboratory technicians (mlt) has three years diploma in medical laboratory science. the curriculum for the programme include internship rotations, where the students get hands-on experiences in each discipline of the laboratory and performs diagnostic testing in a functioning laboratory under supervision. pakistan in pakistan, the national institute of health (nih) in islamabad is the pioneer in laboratory sciences. the college of medical lab technology (cmlt) of the nih offers a two-year f.sc degree in medical lab technology (mlt). the previous two-year b.sc. in mlt was discontinued and replaced by the four-year bachelor program in medical lab sciences (mls). the university of health sciences in lahore also offers a four-year bachelor program in mls through approved colleges. the university of lahore, university of faisalabad, university of sargodha, and superior university in lahore all offer a five-year doctor of medical lab sciences (dmls) program. eligibility criteria for the four-year b.sc. in mls and the five-year doctor of medical lab sciences (dmls) is the f.sc. pre-medical. united states in the united states, a medical laboratory scientist (mls), medical technologist (mt), or a clinical laboratory scientist (cls) typically earns a bachelor's degree in medical laboratory science, clinical laboratory science, or medical technology. other routes include attaining a degree in biomedical science or in a life / biological science (biology, biochemistry, microbiology, etc.). both routes typically requires the mls/mt/cls to obtain certification from a national certifying board (aab, amt, or ascp) as most laboratories exceed the federal minimum requirements established by the clinical laboratory improvement amendments (clia). common comprehensive medical laboratory scientist degree programs are set up in a few different ways. in 3+1 programs, the student attends classroom courses for three years and complete a clinical rotation their final year of study. in 2+2 programs, students have already completed their lower division coursework and return to complete their last two years of study in a cls program. in 4+1 program, students who have already completed an undergraduate program return to complete a year of medical laboratory training. the training is typically completed at a clinical site rather than a college. the core curriculum in medical technology generally comprises 20 credits in clinical chemistry, 20 credits in hematology, and 20 credits in clinical microbiology. during clinical rotations, the student experiences hands-on learning in each discipline of the laboratory and performs diagnostic testing in a functioning laboratory under supervision. with limited or no compensation, a student in the clinical phase of training usually works 40 hours per week for 20 to 52 weeks. some programs in the united states have halved the time students spend completing their clinical rotation reduced due to staffing shortages. for example, in 2015, the mls program at the university of minnesota reduced the clinical rotation portion of the program from 22 weeks to 12 weeks. in the united states, a two-year academic program (associate's degree) qualifies the graduate to work as a medical laboratory technician (mlt). mlts receive training more exclusively in laboratory sciences without the basic science coursework often required by mls programs; however, there are many mlt training programs that require substantial basic didactic science course work prior to entry into a clinical practicum. although the didactic coursework may be less for the mlt, the clinical practicum, in many cases, is similar to that of the mls student's. this equates to mlts who are well equipped to enter the work force with relevant and knowledge based practical application. the shorter training time may be attractive to many students, but there are disadvantages to this route. mts, mlss and clss usually earn higher salaries and have more responsibilities than mlts. in 2018,