Start Medical Lab Assistant program this summer; complete in two semesters

Mar 3, 2023Gail Crutchfield
Medical Lab Technology

Wallace State Medical Lab Technology students Heather Hollis and Mollie Hall participate in a simulation in the Simulation Center of the School of Nursing and Center for Science. The Medical Lab Technology program is accepting applications for the Medical Lab Assistant certificate program for Summer and Fall and for the Medical Lab Technology associate degree program in the Fall.

Hanceville, AL — Wallace State Community College’s Medical Laboratory Technician (MLT) program announces it is currently accepting applications for its Medical Lab Assistant (MLA) certificate program. The two-semester program offers students entry into a field that works mostly behind the scenes of health science but plays an important role in healthcare.

“For almost every diagnostic test that is ordered in a hospital, clinic or medical office, a medical lab assistant or medical lab technologist collects samples and/or perform testing procedures on those samples in the lab,” said Christopher Cleghorn, chair of the Wallace State MLT program.

The two-semester option provides training on laboratory techniques, including how to draw blood from patients. A clinical practicum, where students will use the information they learned in the laboratory techniques classes, is the third of three classes required for the certificate. The practicum consists of specimen collection, processing, preparation and analysis of patient specimens, critical assessment of specimens for pre-analytical errors and interfering substances, proper documentation and reporting of patient results appropriate to the level of an MLA.

At the completion, the student will be eligible to take the MLA national certification exam. Student can enter the workforce in a field that is in high demand.

“I get calls every week from hospitals and practices seeking qualified medical lab employees,” Cleghorn said.

Students can also use the certificate as a building block toward earning an associate degree in Medical Laboratory Technology.

Applicants to the MLA program need a minimum GPA of 2.0 to apply and either have approved CPR certification or enroll in EMS100 upon admission to the program. The MLA Certificate Program Application is available at www.wallacestate.edu/MLT. Applications are available to start this summer or this fall.

The program is also accepting applications for the Medical Lab Technology associate degree program for Fall 2023.

Priority registration for summer and fall semesters will begin April 3, with registration for all students on April 6. Summer 2023 classes begin May 24. Fall 2023 classes begin Aug. 18. For more information, visit www.wallacestate.edu, call 256.352.8000 or come by Lion Central in the lobby of the James C. Bailey Center Monday-Wednesday 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., Thursday 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., or Friday 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.

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