Lab Shortage

Weird that at least one phlebotomist job pays more than MT/CLS jobs down in Florida - if I'm not mistaken, phlebotomists in NC and VA get paid around $12 or $13/hour, compared to the $18.25/hour that brand new MT graduates get paid at the hospital in Winston Salem, NC where I trained.  Isn't the cost of living higher in Florida than in NC/VA, or just certain parts of that state?

This is very ironic. I'm a certified Medical Technologist, but I'm working as a certified Clinical Phlebotomist for Quest Diagnostics in Florida. I noticed, after I did all the calculations of a regular pay check as a Medical Technologist that it wasn't worthy for me continue working as MT. As a Phlebotomist I make more money, I'm not schedule to work weekends, I can make overtime easier than be working in the hospital, I'm off every single holiday, I have full fringe benefits, and I can go to work in my bike. The question is, How can this be beated by an MT attached to hospital ridiculous hours, weekend slavery, no OT allowance, compromise holidays, etc.? I recognize the commitment that I have as a Healthcare professional toward the patients, but the way that hospitals, and other clinical facilities manage their human resources is simply, insane

High 5 to all the professional medical laboratorians here. I certainly hope that everybody gets the pay and recognition that they want. The thought of there being a medical lab personnel shortage seems to be a joke to me. While searching vigorously for an entry level medical laboratory technician opportunity I’ve noticed that there are hardly any labs willing to hire and train certified inexperienced laboratorians . Why is there so much fuss over which certification agency one is certified by? Acquiring certification is not easy. Before I worry about salary comparisons I got to deal with lab managers who won't hire me because I don't have the same education that they have or not certified by the same certification agency that they're certified by.

I'm certainly glad that I have a double major. I'm sick of trying to get a job in this field. Lab managers are too judgmental. They need to recognize ambitious certified entry level laboratorians by taking them up under their wings regardless if their certification is through ASCP, NCA or AMT. Lab managers should remember that somebody gave them a chance to enter into this field and grow. Finally, lab personnel should not compare their salaries to other medical professional's salaries. Instead, they should work on getting out of the laboratory and go where the pay is better. Medical Laboratory Science is here to stay, without it patient care can not exist!

To anyone who works in a hospital whose administration does not highly prioritize or "care about" the lab, e-mail them a link to www.labsarevital.com

I was stunned to find MT positions advertised in the back of Advance magazine somewhere in Pennsylvania (I think) that advertised a $30/hour STARTING pay rate.  It must just be that high in states that have a significantly higher cost of living than NC or southern VA.  

The starting pay rate for brand new graduate MTs at the hospital in Winston Salem, NC where I trained is $18.25/hour.  My current pay rate (with five years' experience) is $16.55/hour with a whopping $2/hour shift differential for third shift. (When I worked 2nd shift in Microbiology at Duke University Medical Center three years ago, however, my differential was $2.75/hour, and our "weekend option" 3rd shift technologist who worked Friday, Saturday, and Sunday 12-hour nights enjoyed a shift differential of either $4.50 or $4.75/hour, if I'm not mistaken.)

I choose to focus more on taking pride in my work and keep in mind that it DOES save lives, rather than wallow in bitterness about the $4.00/hour second shift differential (in addition to the initially higher pay rate itself) that NURSES get across the board at the hospital that currently employs me, etc.  

I have more financial difficulties than many people have to face (divorce/child custody attorney fees, uninsured medical bills from a "between jobs" period two years ago, replacing a car transmission only to have that one fail 1.5 years later), but I have learned the hard way that anger and bitterness will EAT YOU ALIVE if you allow it to do so.  

I have faith that circumstances in our field will get better in the future, both pay- and recognition-wise, so I do not intend to leave the medical laboratory strictly for a "better paying" job.  We may have to speak up MUCH more in order to educate nurses, hospital administrators, etc. about our valuable role in patient care in order to achieve that.

I have been a Clinical Laboratory Scientist for 30 years.  I have always enjoyed helping people, helping diagnose their diseases and helping them recover.  However the state of the profession, especially in my state, is killing any shred of idealism I may have left.  NJ has been suffering a big hit going back long before the recession ever started.  Hospitals are closing all over the state.  Many long time technologists (27+years) have been laid off because all the hospitals are cutting budgets to the point of dangerously low staffing levels.  Add to this the attitude of the hospital admin. that the lab is not all that important so all this cutting is no big deal. They don't understand that increasing automation does not mean you need less staff.   They are penalizing departments that are streamlining by reducing fte's and not replacing people that retire.  Does this make any sense in a field where there is a shortage and in a few years at least 40%of the techs are going to retire?  We have to recruit now so that when the mass retirement occurs, these newcomers will be already trained to take over.  There will be a huge brain drain that cannot be fixed overnight.  Low salary is only part of the problem.  The attitudes of doctors, nurses, hospital administrators and our own colleagues in the lab are also keeping us down. I am glad to train MT students when they rotate through.  I just hope they don't see all the bad things that are going on so they won't change their major. I like being a Med Tech but conditions just keep getting more and more difficult.   After being in the field for 30 years I have accrued benefits and just can't up and move to another state and leave relatives and friends behind.  All this seems to be falling on deaf ears in my institution.  

Working in the lab is the lowest paid job with a 4yr medical degree.

The automation is incredible and taking over the vast majority of testing. More tests have been created, but they have already or are in the process of being automated.

Point of care testing is getting faster, easier, and better.

Wages are horrible. The top out rate is $25-30/hr for most of the country.

On the plus side...it is good experience to go on to another medical field like...physician assistant or med school.

There will always be people who think working in the lab is great. There are people happy working fast food too.

Just a comment about LeAnn vanAmerongen - Right On to your letter - I so agree with your observations and philosophy - wish I knew how to incorporate your info on scheduling into real life - it is definitely KEY to happy employees.

Thanks

Judi Lee

Fairbanks Alaska

As a long term cytotechnologist who has filled many lab roles from bench tech to Lab Director, I think there is much more to retention and recruiting than salary alone.  Laboratory science positions occupy a nearly unique career slot in that the majority of applicants are people who either will or are seeking more than money, but rather a "good" job that meets multiple needs in their lives.  

Firstly, the field attracts and demands people who are by nature detail oriented and demand competence and accuracy of self and others.  The upside to this is that the masses of lab employees have ongoing insight into troubleshooting and improvement and will be unresistant to quality work practices.  Laboratory management setups that remain old-school, authoritarian and non-inclusive of staff in managing day to day affairs are causing their own internal frustrations and turnover problems, not to mention missing out on a vast pool of talent in increasing proficiency, cost savings and lean and mean team excellence.  You must create satisfaction, not demand it.

The downside of such a work force is that without positive leadership, large numbers of these employees can turn negative and critical and emotionally distance themselves from participating where they are most needed.  The whole employee must be managed, not just his or her technical side.  Often flawlessly technically performing techs overwhelm their value to a lab in their negative behaviors and are lost due to mismanagement.  Worse, these are frequently the employees who are promoted to "lead" other humans, further driving turnover.

Most importantly, labs can more easily build in low cost employee benefits in personal and scheduling flexibility than other healthcare positions can, and these elements are often overlooked as job features that employees treasure and stay around for, even when more financially rewarding jobs are available.  These measures, however, require creating an environment of emotional maturity and trust between management and staff, and between employees and departments before they can work.  Again, authoritarianism does not work, and how people feel about their jobs and their places in them matters.  They have lives and wish them to be respected, and in return they will put out loyalty and dedication.  This can be done with fairness and without coddling when it is employed without favoritism and with continuous commitment to win/win brokering.

In short, labs and hospitals would benefit from training management staff as thoroughly in human "soft" science as they do in process improvement and quality.

Everything that has been said about this field is true...who else would deal with blood, urine, ***, other body fluids, etc??  Only we, who have 4 year degrees (or 2 year) are highly trained to do it.  Yet, day after day, we suffer through snide remarks from nurses and doctors, are felt to be "button pushers" and the constant cry...where are MY test results (nurse)  and what are the numbers (doctor)...and what took you so long (both)??? And, oh yes, I ordered a serum coal level STAT just now.  GO!!!

But, hey, we are well paid for all this. NOT!!!  And our leaders are searching for ways to get more people into this "profession".  Whom are they kidding.  

I am a Med Tech with 30+ years experience. It is true that requirements for a BS are stringent for this profession - but the expertise/knowledge one acquires with a 4 year degree and experience are INVALUABLE to laboratory medicine.  We have Med Techs and MLTs in our lab and BOTH are great, competent, well educated professionals. We welcome new grads and provide a great challenge to them..Come on up and join our team in Fairbanks. It's summer here right now!!!

We have an opening at Fairbanks Memorial- I have worked here over 30 years and it is a great, GREAT place to work. The pay is EXCELLENT in my opinion and the benefits are also...the only thing marginal is retirement healthcare as we have none - but that is true throughout the nation!!

Medical Technology is a great field, in high demand and has a great future for those willing to work for it.

Come on up and have some ALASKAN fun, fishing, camping, traveling, skiing (I am a snowboarder) ..

Judi Lee

Fairbanks, Alaska

Awesome statement about saving lives, Tiffany!

I myself tell new Grads not to waste their time in this field. Med Tech is a self-rewarding field to work, however it does not paid a descent salary to live comfortable without a second job on your own. The majority of techs that I know work two jobs.

When it is close to their retirement, if they had make mistakes, they are dismissed.

30 min tat, walk away robotics instruments that alarm every ten minutes, and working short staffed, makes it a stressful field

As a seasoned Lab Professional, I'd like to throw my 2 cents into this.

The core reason there are lab shortages comes down to the bottom line - salary. As techs with 20, 30 or more years of service finally retire, there aren't enough newly graduated techs to fill those vacancies. This is not real news to anyone. The reason is simple: Why go through the time and expense of earning a degree in Lab Science that pays significantly less than a comparable degree in a different healthcare field?

As I join the ranks of the unemployed and see Labs looking primarily for 4-year techs (mine is a two year degree), I wonder how they can expect to continue to lure people into working for such comparatively paltry wages. A newly graduated RN with a 2-year degree can expect to earn quite a bit more than an experienced MT with a 4-year degree. This inequity is what drives many young people away from degrees and jobs in Medical Labs. Indeed, my council to any young person looking into the lab field is to look elsewhere.

Despite the writer's idealism, experiences do not compensate for inadequate salaries. Fewer and fewer people are going into this field. The shortages will unfortunately only worsen until hospitals and other healthcare facilities recognize the crucial role that lab professionals play in providing optimal patient care.