Needed in the lab

By MAUREEN DOLAN

North Idaho College

Medical lab technicians play one of the most significant and necessary roles in health care, and there’s a rising need for more workers with this special training and knowledge.

The demand for lab workers has grown 13 percent in the last year, almost double the average for other U.S. jobs, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Those jobs are becoming increasingly hard to fill because medical laboratory technology is a field seldom first-considered by career-seekers, and lab workers often go unnoticed by patients.

“We’re so behind-the-scenes that people don’t really think of us,” said Sonja Nehr-Kanet, director of the Medical Laboratory Technology Program at North Idaho College. “Most people think of doctors and nurses.”

Every day, the work of lab professionals influences a majority of clinical decisions made by doctors, nurses and other more visible health care practitioners. Diseases and medical conditions are detected, diagnosed and monitored, all based on lab test results.

Without lab test results, a physician can often only speculate what might be going on with a patient, said Nehr-Kanet. It’s lab work that confirms, or rules out, the doctor’s suspicions.

Nearly all hospitalized patients, 98 percent, have at least one laboratory test ordered, according to a study published in the Journal of Applied Laboratory Medicine. It’s estimated that 70 percent of all patients have some type of lab work done.

Students who successfully complete the two-year Medical Laboratory Technology Program at NIC will obtain an Associate of Applied Science degree, and they will be eligible to sit for a national certification examination.

The students receive instruction in microbiology, hematology, medical chemistry, transfusion medicine, urinalysis and lab operations. Coursework is closely connected to student lab opportunities, and clinical internships are arranged offering students the chance to practice in real-world laboratory environments.

NIC’s program, the only of its kind in Idaho that is accredited by the National Accrediting Agency for Clinical Laboratory Science, was designed by Nehr-Kanet to make it easy for graduates to transfer their credits toward a bachelor-level Medical Laboratory Scientist credential, a program offered at Idaho State University.

“That is a very cherished certification,” Nehr-Kanet said.

Still, the medical laboratory technician career is wonderful on its own, she said.

“But there is a backlog because there aren’t enough of us,” Nehr-Kanet said. “There is a nationwide shortage of qualified lab professionals.”

In addition to the under-the-radar nature of medical lab techs, the shortage is being driven, in part, by a shrinking number of accredited lab professional training programs like the one at NIC. The number of such programs has decreased by 25 percent since 1990, according to a recent report in Scientific American magazine.

At the same time, the number of samples being sent to labs is rising, thanks to an aging population that’s increasing every year in the U.S., and because more lab tests are becoming available for health practitioners to order.

The rise of automation in labs may help address the shortage.

“But you’re still going to need a person with a brain overseeing the work and making sure it makes sense,” Nehr-Kanet said.

There are other advanced career paths that can begin with a two-year Medical Laboratory Technology certification. A student can ladder up to advanced education opportunities like pharmacy school or medical school. It can be a stepping stone along the way to a career as a specialist like a neurosurgeon or pediatrician.

A student who completes the med lab tech program at NIC can work per diem and make income to help offset the cost of additional education.

According to ZipRecruiter, a nationwide, digital hiring platform for employers and job seekers, the average annual pay for medical lab techs in the Coeur d’Alene area as of Oct. 28 is roughly $40,000.

“Based on recent job postings on ZipRecruiter, the Medical Laboratory Technician job market in both Idaho and the surrounding area is very active. Idaho ranks number 12 out of 50 states nationwide for Medical Laboratory Technician job salaries,” said the agency, on its website, www.ziprecruiter.com.

“Our students are well-prepared for so much. I love to see where my students have gone and what impacts they’ve made,” said Nehr-Kanet, a medical lab scientist herself. “My contribution to patients is through my students.”

To be considered for admission into NIC’s Medical Laboratory Technician Program for the spring 2020 semester, applications must be received by Nov. 14 at 5 p.m.

To apply, and for more information about the program, visit www.nic.edu/mlt.