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Allied Health World Home  |  Medical Lab Technician

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Medical Technician

By an allied health world contributing writer
Published:  January 8th, 2010

A medical technician, commonly referred to as a clinical laboratory technician, typically prepares specimens and perform manual tests or tests using automated analyzers. These professionals are responsible for running routine lab tests used for diagnosis and treatment or prevention of disease. Medical technicians traditionally work under the direct supervision of medical technologists.

What employment settings can clinical laboratory technicians work at?

Medical technicians are mainly employed at hospitals, diagnostic and medical laboratories, clinics, and sometimes large physician’s offices. They are assigned a shift to work if employed in a hospital and if employed at a lab or doctor’s office medical technicians usually work regular daytime hours.

Are there different titles for this profession?

Clinical laboratory technicians are also commonly called medical technicians, medical lab technicians, or MLTs. This profession is not to be confused with Medical Technologists, commonly known as MTs or Clinical Lab Scientists. Medical Technologists are required to have a bachelor’s degree to practice, along with passing a national certification exam. Medical Technologists and Technicians can perform many of the same duties but medical technologists are often paid higher salaries due to their more extensive educational background.

Medical Lab Assistant is also a different job than medical technicians. Medical Lab Assistants, commonly called clinical lab assistants, do not have to have any type of formal education. There are short, 4-6 month certificate programs these professions can attend but formal training is not required. Also, medical lab assistants are not required to become nationally certified. These professionals are traditionally paid less than medical technicians.

Specific job duties of Medical Technicians include:

• Cleaning and setting up lab equipment.
• Conducting blood and urine chemical analyses through a microscope or automated analyzer. This is typically done to screen for disease or abnormalities.
• Developing reports of test data through the use of charts and graphs.
• Analyzing experiment results using electrical devices to ensure the specifications were adhered to.
• Examining cells for abnormalities.
• Scanning specimens for microorganisms.
• Performing blood counts and conducting blood tests to prepare them for transfusion.
• Discussing cell abnormalities with a pathologist.