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Employment Opportunities for Lab Technicians Are Expected to Grow
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In order for physicians and nurses to provide optimal health care, they must spend the bulk of their time with patients while support staff handle most of the administrative duties including medical coding, lab tests, and database management. A medical lab technician, for example, plays a crucial role during the diagnosis and testing phases of a patient's checkup. A typical medical technician might run various urine or blood tests and return those results to a physician with detailed analyses.
Lab Technician Salaries and Advancement Potential
A medical lab technician (also called a clinical lab technician or phlebotomist) can expect to make around $30,000 a year, according to US Department of Labor. However, having proper background and training is quite essential for this particular field given the nature of the job. Most people who work as a phlebotomist have at least an associate's degree as a medical lab technician. One way to advance your career is to become a clinical laboratory technologist. In this role, you'll perform more complex tests, and analyses. While most laboratory technologists hold a bachelor's degree, although it is possible to advance with additional education and work experience.
According to the same 2004 US Department of Labor study, positions for medical lab technicians are expected to be numerous in the coming years. In fact, job opportunities for this particular career are expected to grow much faster than the national average for other occupations. This is in large part due to the fact that baby boomers are getting to retire in substantial numbers. The current health care industry will have to grow exponentially in order to keep up with the increased demand for medical services and attention.