Celebrate the contributions to healthcare that medical laboratory professionals make every day. We are the Pathologists, Clinical Laboratory Bioanalysts, Clinical Laboratory Scientists, Medical Laboratory Technicians, Certified Phlebotomy Technicians, and Laboratory Assistants. We perform laboratory tests which aids in the diagnosis and treatment of disease and assessment of general health.
Laboratory tests take human biological samples such as whole blood, urine, spinal fluid and other body fluids and perform various analytical processes to discover specific chemical or cellular attributes as requested by physicians. Laboratory tests are used by physicians, and other healthcare practitioners, to direct patient care. Over 80% of clinical and diagnostic decisions are based on the results of laboratory testing.
Medical laboratory science involves diagnostic laboratory testing from A to Z. We do everything from providing cancer testing results, to predicting the correct antibiotic to prescribe, to typing the correct blood for surgery, to determining pregnancy status. Clinical laboratory professionals provide answers to life-and-death decisions every day. People often think their lab tests are done by their doctor, like it's done on House, or Grey's Anatomy. In fact, you would probably not want your personal physician to do your lab tests because the specialized skills required are not an integral part of the medical school curriculum.
So every year during the last week of April, we celebrate our contributions to healthcare and hope that you can help spread the word too.