For more information contact:

Pat Griffin
Program Director
or
Jeanne Peterson
Program Counselor

Students enrolling in and graduating from a Clinical Laboratory Technician program must meet the essential function requirements of the academic program and of the corresponding CLT profession. They must complete programs consisting of academic study, simulated laboratory practice, and clinical laboratory experience. Students must be able to contribute to the progress of their peers, complete tasks assigned by instructors and clinical supervisors, and provide services that contribute to the wellbeing of patients. The essential functions of the CLT are as follows:

Observation

The CLT student must be able to:

Observe laboratory demonstrations of specimens, techniques, and instruments.

Characterize the color, consistency, and clarity of biological specimens or reagents.

Use a microscope to discriminate among fine differences in structure and color (hue, shading, and intensity) in microscopic specimens.

Read and comprehend text, numbers, and graphs displayed and on a video monitor.

Movement

The CLT student must be able to:

Move freely and safely about a laboratory.

Perform continuous physical work, often requiring prolonged sitting or standing over several hours.

Travel to clinical laboratory sites for practical experience.

Reach laboratory bench tops and shelves, patients lying in hospital beds, or patients seated in specimen collection furniture.

Maneuver phlebotomy and culture collection equipment to collect laboratory specimens from patients.

Operate laboratory equipment (pipettes, inoculating loops, test tubes) and adjust instruments to perform laboratory procedures.

Use an electronic keyboard to operate laboratory instruments and calculate, record, evaluate, and transmit data.

Communication

The CLT student must be able to:

Read and comprehend technical and professional materials (textbooks, journal, articles, handbooks, and procedure manuals).

Follow oral and/or written instructions in order to correctly perform laboratory test procedures.

Clearly, effectively, confidentially, and sensitively converse with patients regarding laboratory test orders and specimen collection instructions.

Communicate with instructors, peers, laboratory staff, and other health care professional orally and in recorded format.

Intellect

The CLT student must be able to:

Possess the intellectual skills: Comprehension, reasoning, analysis, comparison, self-expression, and self-analysis.

Be able to exercise sufficient judgment to recognize errors and take appropriate corrective actions.

Behavior

The CLT student must be able to:

Be able to organize work and manage the use of time in order to complete technical tasks within realistic time limits.

Possess the emotional health necessary to effectively use his or her intellect to exercise appropriate judgment in a distracting environment under stress.

Be flexible and creative and adapt to professional and technical change.

Follow established safety procedures in order to minimize risk of injury to self and coworkers.

Adapt to working with unpleasant biological specimens.

Be supportive of peers and health care professionals in order to promote a team approach to learning, task completion, problem solving, and patient care.

Be honest and forthright about errors.

Be able to critically evaluate his or her own performance, accept constructive criticism, and be responsible for improving performance.

Be compassionate and ethical.

Students with disabilities should consult with CVTC's Disability Transition Specialist regarding reasonable accommodations needed to perform successfully in this program.

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