Med Lab Professionals Week: April 20-26

 

Kankakee Community College will observe the 50th annual Medical Laboratory Professionals Week, April 20-26.

“Medical laboratory professionals are essential to patient care,” said Lamanda Baade, director of KCC’s Medical Laboratory Technology programs. “Behind every diagnosis is a laboratory expert working carefully to ensure accurate results. Their work guides treatment decisions, helps detect diseases early, and ultimately improves patient outcomes.”

There are approximately 344,000 practitioners, medical laboratory scientists and technicians in the United States, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

KCC offers a two-year Medical Laboratory Technology associate degree as well as an advanced placement associate degree for qualified students who have already completed general education requirements. The advanced placement program can be completed in three semesters.

Graduates of the associate degree programs are eligible to take the national registry examination given by the American Society of Clinical Pathology and other certifying agencies. Each year, KCC students who have taken the national registration exam have had a 100% pass rate for three consecutive years, Baade said. In addition, the programs boasts a 100% job placement rate.

KCC also offers a Medical Laboratory Assistant certificate and phlebotomy certificate.

Laboratory professionals often work in hospitals, physician offices, or private clinical laboratories, performing laboratory tests and monitoring the quality of their results. Others are employed by university or industrial research laboratories to seek solutions for medicine’s many unanswered questions.

For more information on a career in Medical Laboratory Technology, visit healthcareers.kcc.edu or contact Baade at lbaade@kcc.edu or 815-802-8837.