medical scientist laboratory shortage clinical lab science career employment

For those looking for a career in the medical field they will be happy to know that business is good, the need for highly capable and qualified medical professionals is leaving many clinical facilities going to other countries to find proficient doctors and health professionals.

The marketability of someone who attains a degree in medical laboratory science is really high, once graduate you will have the opportunity to become a clinical laboratory scientist. As a healthcare professional you will perform chemical, hematological, immunologic, microscopic, and bacteriological diagnostic analyses on body fluids such as blood, urine, sputum, stool, cerebrospinal fluid, peritoneal fluid, pericardial fluid, and synovial fluid, as well as other specimens.

Educational requirements for a Clinical Laboratory Scientist

Typically you will earns a bachelor's degree in clinical laboratory science, medical technology or in a life science, in which case certification from an accredited training program is also required. As you are probably aware most four-year medical technology degree programs, you are required to attends classroom courses for three years and clinical rotations for one year.

Shortage of Laboratory Scientists

U.S is experiencing a shortage of Clinical Laboratory Scientists as well as other healthcare professionals. The reason is because student enrollment in CLS programs is steadily declining. This makes the number of job openings will continue to increase as baby boomers retire and make way for new staff in laboratories.

The increase in elderly care will cause a heaver workload on those who enter the profession, and the number of students currently in training programs will not be sufficient to satisfy the future vacancies and the increased work load.

The National Accrediting Agency for Clinical Laboratory Sciences (NAACLS) is committed to being the premier international agency for accreditation and approval of educational programs in the clinical laboratory sciences.

Why open positions go unfilled

"The shortage of health care professionals is strongly reflected by the number of open positions. There are simply not enough candidates in the current market place to fill the open positions in many hospitals and health care facilities across the country." said Cathy Allman, National Association for Health Care Recruiters Executive Director.

Other factors include a shortage of instructors to teach classes in many two year and four year programs as well as tougher educational standards, the solution lies in Employers who have innovative recruitment and retention programs and remain focused on developing a retention culture among recent graduates.

National Association for Health Care Recruiters Executive Director.

National Accrediting Agency for Clinical Laboratory Sciences (NAACLS)