From Technical Assistants to Critical Thinkers: From World War II to 2014

Abstract

A review of professional literature was conducted to examine the history of the education of medical laboratory practitioners. This comprehensive review included historical educational milestones from World War II to present day. During this time period the standard of two years of college required for matriculation into a medical technology program increased to four years. Critical thinking skills promoted in the educational model and applied in practice expanded from an analytic and psychomotor orientation to include those requiring extensive situational interpretation and negotiation. By the end of the twentieth century, the clinical laboratory had experienced significant scientific and technologic transformations necessitating greatly expanded roles for the medical laboratory practitioner. Though the educational requirements and education model have changed minimally since the 1970's, the knowledge and skills required for the next generation of medical laboratory practitioners continue to escalate. The second decade of the 21 st century portends a transformation in medical laboratory practitioner education commensurate with the rapid advancement of science, technology, communications, and the precepts of evidence-based practice.

Core Competencies for a Biomedical Laboratory Scientist – a Delphi study

“…None of the scienti c competencies reached consensus in this study which might be a bit surprising since there are publications discussing the future importance of critical and analytic thinking in the professions of laboratory medicine and management [29][30][31]. This might be explained by the fact that most of our panel members were Biomedical Laboratory Scientists working in routine hospital-based laboratories.…”

“…Previous studies have shown that in the future, the functional speci cations for Biomedical Laboratory Scientist will evolve to include both deeper knowledge and new skills [29][30][31]. Deeper knowledge in new advanced laboratory methods and new skills connected to the growth of evidence-based laboratory medicine where there is a demand to choose the most convenient methods with respect to diagnostic, medical, ethical, economical, and societal aspects.…”