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OBJECTIVE: To describe the emergence of laboratory personnel at the technician and assistant levels and discuss educational issues that arose between 1962 and 1977.
DESIGN: A survey of literature on the history of clinical laboratory science (CLS) was conducted. References consulted include various books and professional journals.
CONCLUSION: Advances in scientific and medical knowledge and the development of new technologies created new roles and responsibilities for medical technologists (MTs) in the areas of education, research, and laboratory management. At the same time, the certified laboratory assistant (CLA) category was established as a means of providing competent personnel to work in physician office laboratories and small community hospitals in lieu of a certified MT. The growth in popularity of two-year colleges and the availability of federal funding for the development of allied health programs led to the establishment of yet another category of laboratory personnel: the medical laboratory technician (MLT). These developments prompted educators to modify their CLS curricula, develop educational programs at the CLA and MLT levels, and provide opportunities to CLAs and MLTs for upward mobility. Furthermore, once the Board of Registry (BOR) established the baccalaureate degree as the prerequisite for MT certification, educators also began to restructure and more closely integrate the academic and clinical components of MT programs.
ABBREVIATIONS: ASCP = American Society of Clinical Pathologists; ASMT = American Society for Medical Technology; BOR = Board of Registry; CLA = certified laboratory assistant; CLS = clinical laboratory science/scientists; LA = laboratory assistant; MLT = medical laboratory technician; MT = medical technology/technologist.
INDEX TERMS: American Society for Medical Technology; clinical laboratory history; clinical laboratory science; clinical laboratory science education.
Clin Lab Sci 1999;12(4):213
As the healthcare system and clinical laboratories became more sophisticated and complex in the years between 1962 and 1977, medical technologists (MTs) acquired new roles and responsibilities. Laboratory supervisors began to take on more administrative tasks, and MTs working in non-supervisory positions began to perform functions that had been previously handled by supervisors. This expanding scope of practice in MT, the emergence of new categories of clinical laboratory personnel, and the new baccalaureate degree requirement led educators to critically evaluate educational programs in MT. As a result, three themes emerged from these discussions:
1. advances...