Medical Laboratory Technologists Research Articles

Evaluating training needs of medical laboratory technologists in Pakistan: A focus group study

Evaluating training needs of medical laboratory technologists in Pakistan: A focus group study

Benefit analysis of the auto-verification system of intelligent inspection for microorganisms.

In recent years, the automatic machine for microbial identification and antibiotic susceptibility tests has been introduced into the microbiology laboratory of our hospital, but there are still many steps that need manual operation. The purpose of this study was to establish an auto-verification system for bacterial naming to improve the turnaround time (TAT) and reduce the burden on clinical laboratory technologists. After the basic interpretation of the gram staining results of microorganisms, the appearance of strain growth, etc., the 9 rules were formulated by the laboratory technologists specialized in microbiology for auto-verification of bacterial naming. The results showed that among 70,044 reports, the average pass rate of auto-verification was 68.2%, and the reason for the failure of auto-verification was further evaluated. It was found that the main causes reason the inconsistency between identification results and strain appearance rationality, the normal flora in the respiratory tract and urine that was identified, the identification limitation of the mass spectrometer, and so on. The average TAT for the preliminary report of bacterial naming was 35.2 h before, which was reduced to 31.9 h after auto-verification. In summary, after auto-verification, the laboratory could replace nearly 2/3 of manual verification and issuance of reports, reducing the daily workload of medical laboratory technologists by about 2 h. Moreover, the TAT on the preliminary identification report was reduced by 3.3 h on average, which could provide treatment evidence for clinicians in advance.

Health Sciences Faculty Attitude and Readiness Towards Simulation-Based Inter-Professional Education.

To explore attitude and readiness of health sciences faculty towards simulation-based inter-professional education (IPE). Qualitative case-study; critical realist paradigm as used. Place and Duration of the Study: Bahria University Health Sciences Campus from December 2022 to March 2023. Maximum variation purposive sampling technique was used for selecting the participants. A total of thirty-one participants were selected. Five faculty members from Nursing, five from Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT), five Medical Laboratory Technologists (MLT), eight participants from medical, and eight from the dental faculty. Data were collected using individual semi-structured interviews and two focus group discussion. Duration of an individual interview was 30 minutes and that of the focus group discussion was 60 minutes. All interviews were recorded and transcribed. Community of inquiry and community of practice theoretical framework were used for guiding the research design and interviews. Pattern matching technique was used for the data analysis. Atlas ti-9 was used for organising the data. Ten themes were identified after the analysis. teamwork, understanding roles and responsibilities, time constraint communication skills, curriculum integration, patient outcome, interprofessional boundaries, ethics in practice, faculty training, and visionary leadership. The faculty members valued interprofessional education but were reluctant to implement it due to the limited resources. There is a need of faculty development for implementation of simulation-based interprofessional education. There is insufficient research on simulation and interprofessional education in Pakistan because of which faculty members are unacquainted of its benefits. Interprofessional education, Simulation-based learning, Medical education.

Examining the health and functioning status of medical laboratory professionals in Ontario, Canada: an exploratory study during the COVID-19 pandemic

ObjectivesThis study aims to explore the overall and specific aspects of the functioning of medical laboratory professionals (MLPs) in Ontario, Canada during the COVID-19 pandemic.DesignA cross-sectional analysis where a questionnaire...

Hidden and Understaffed: Exploring Canadian Medical Laboratory Technologists' Pandemic Stressors and Lessons Learned.

(1) Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the critical role of medical laboratory technologists (MLTs) in the healthcare system. Little is known about the challenges MLTs faced in keeping up with the unprecedented demands posed by the pandemic, which contributed to the notable staff shortage in the profession. This study aims to identify and understand the stressors of MLTs in Canada and the lessons learned through their lived experiences during the pandemic. (2) Methods: In this descriptive qualitative study, we conducted five semi-structured focus groups with MLTs working during the pandemic. The focus group sessions were audio-recorded and then transcribed verbatim. Thematic analysis was used to inductively code data and identify themes. (3) Results: A total of 27 MLTs across Canada participated in the study. Findings highlighted four key themes: (i) unexpected challenges navigating through the uncertainties of an ever-evolving pandemic; (ii) implications of staff shortage for the well-being of MLTs and quality of patient care; (iii) revealing the realities of the hidden, yet indispensable role of MLTs in predominantly non-patient-facing roles; and (iv) leveraging insights from the COVID-19 pandemic to enhance healthcare practices and preparedness. (4) Conclusion: The study provides in-depth insight into the experiences of MLTs across Canada during the pandemic. Based on our findings, we provide recommendations to enhance the sustainability of the laboratory workforce and ensure preparedness and resiliency among MLTs for future public health emergencies, as well as considerations as to combating the critical staff shortage.

Effects of Continuous Security Monitoring on Security Controls of Electronic Health Records in Public Hospitals, Tanzania

This paper examines the effects of continuous security monitoring on the security of electronic health records in Tanzanian public hospitals. The study adopted a cross-sectional research design and quantitative research approach using a sample of 300 respondents from the six public hospitals in Tanzania. A questionnaire was used to collect data from the main users of EHRs such as medical doctors, IT officers, nurses, pharmacists, laboratory technologists, record officers and administrative officers. A multiple linear regression model was used to evaluate the effects of continuous security monitoring on the security of electronic health records in Tanzanian public hospitals. The findings revealed that continuous security monitoring is a significant predictor of the security of electronic health records in Tanzanian public hospitals, (B= .509, p< 0.001). This implies that, continuous security monitoring explains 50.9% of the variance in security of electronic health records in Tanzanian public hospitals. Based on this finding, is recommended that, to enhance effective security controls in electronic health records, public hospitals in Tanzanian should consider the adoption of continuous security monitoring by making security controls more automated

Blended Learning Effectiveness: Improving Japanese Medical Laboratory Science Students’ Identification of Parasite Eggs

Parasitic infections are declining in Japan, resulting in fewer hours of parasitology instruction in medical laboratory science and medical schools. However, there are growing concerns that the parasite identification skills of medical laboratory technologists and the diagnostic skills of physicians may be compromised as a result. Effective teaching methods are required to improve the identification of parasites in pre-graduate education. We therefore adopted a new teaching method: the blended learning method, in 2018. This method combined the e-learning and jigsaw methods, which had already been implemented separately in 2017. This study aimed to evaluate the pedagogical effectiveness of this blended learning approach compared to that of 2017 in teaching parasitology practice to students enrolled in the Department of Medical Laboratory Science. The results show that the median score for the practical test was 83.3 points for the blended learning lessons, which was not significantly different from the scores for jigsaw or e-learning lessons. However, blended learning had the lowest percentage of failures on the practical test, at 10.7%. Additionally, the microscopic image test results indicate a significant memory retention effect. From the questionnaire results, 94.7% of the students were satisfied with their practice. In conclusion, the blended learning did not significantly improve parasite identification skills, but it may reduce the number of failures, suggesting a knowledge retention effect and a high level of satisfaction with this practice.

Pediatric pain knowledge and attitudes among health care professionals-A National Danish Survey.

To explore and compare Danish health-care professionals' attitudes and knowledge towards pain management of children. The cross-sectional study was carried out using the Pediatric Pain Knowledge and Attitudes Questionnaire. The questionnaire was distributed to all health care professionals caring for children in three hospital settings, including nurses and physicians in departments of pediatric, emergency, and anesthesia and medical laboratory technologists. The study was conducted in 2020 and 765 health care professionals participated. Within the six main categories included in the questionnaire, there were significant differences between nurses and physicians in three subcategories: view on the care of children in pain, using drugs to relieve pain, and the four mandatories. Comparing nurses with medical laboratory technicians, there were significant differences in the subcategory "view on the care of children in pain." Comparing types of clinical departments, there were significant differences in the subcategories' view on the care of children in pain, using drugs to relieve pain, and the four mandatories. Overall, we found that the participating health professionals did not have a uniform understanding of pain management and therefore might treat children differently. The present study highlights the need to align health care professionals' knowledge regarding pain assessment and management of children, as well as the need to develop and test interventions that support the use of knowledge in practice.

Phlebotomy in Clinical Practices and Allied Healthcare professionals

Medical science is growing very fast with the development of new and new products as well as in the field of development of very sophisticated technology along with the development of high-quality instruments. These instruments are helpful not only in the reduction of time but also reduce the cost of test procedure. Daily so many tests are being performed to know the actual cause of disease for that blood is needed. Phlebotomy is the process of making an incision in a vein with a needle. Collection of blood sample for the test is a very crucial method. This should be performed by a trained person only in order to reduce the risk of transmission of the disease. Allied health care personals like medical laboratory technologists are person trained for this purpose.

Burnout among healthcare providers: Its prevalence and association with anxiety and depression during the COVID-19 pandemic in Macao, China.

Burnout in healthcare providers (HPs) might lead to negative consequences at personal, patient-care and healthcare system levels especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of burnout and the contributing variables, and to explore how, from health workforce management perspective, HPs' experiences related to carrying out COVID-19 duties would be associated with their burnout. A cross-sectional, open online survey, informed by physical and psychological attributes reportedly related to burnout, the Copenhagen Burnout Inventory (CBI) and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), was completed by HPs in Macau, China during October and December 2021. Factors associated with burnout were analysed using multiple logistic regressions. Among the 498 valid responses, the participants included doctors (37.5%), nurses (27.1%), medical laboratory technologist (11.4%) and pharmacy professionals (10.8%), with the majority being female (66.1%), aged between 25-44years (66.0%), and participated in the COVID-19 duties (82.9%). High levels of burnout (personal (60.4%), work-related (50.6%) and client-related (31.5%)), anxiety (60.6%), and depression (63.4%) were identified. Anxiety and depression remained significantly and positively associated with all types of burnout after controlling for the strong effects of demographic and work factors (e.g. working in the public sector or hospital, or having COVID-19 duties). HPs participated in COVID-19 duties were more vulnerable to burnout than their counterparts and were mostly dissatisfied with the accessibility of psychological support at workplace (62.6%), workforce distribution for COVID-19 duties (50.0%), ability to rest and recover (46.2%), and remuneration (44.7%), all of which were associated with the occurrence of burnout. Personal, professional and health management factors were found attributable to the burnout experienced by HPs during the COVID-19 pandemic, requiring actions from individual and organizational level. Longitudinal studies are needed to monitor the trend of burnout and to inform effective strategies of this occupational phenomenon.

Pengembangan Sumber Daya Manusia di Puskesmas Kabupaten Langkat Kecamatan Salapian

The World Health Organization (2006) found that health workers contribute up to 80% to successful health development and one of the best ways to solve the health worker crisis is education, along with improved human resource management policies. and training. Health care workers are needed in health care services, so those who manage them need to take into account all their needs, wants and interests so that they can perform at their best. Exploring human resource development in Sarapian and Langkat districts.This type of research is qualitative research. Primary data are collected by in-depth interviews(Dept. Interview). Data from in-depth interviews with informants it was processed and analyzed using a content analysis approach. The types of health workers consist of Health Human Resources (HRD) in Langkat District, Salapian District, which are still dominated by medical personnel, including: 7% of dentists, 11.2% of general practitioners, 45% of midwives, 21.1% of nurses, while Community Health Workers are 5.6%, Environmental Health Workers are 2.8%, Pharmacy Staff are 4.2%, Health Nutrition Workers are 1.4%, and Medical Laboratory Technologists are 1.4%. HRH development is in accordance with needs development standards. Provision of training for HRH development isconfined to healthcare workers and its distribution is still uneven.
 Keywords: Health Human Resources, Development.

A Retrospective Study on the Burden of Malaria in Northeastern Ethiopia from 2015 to 2020: Implications for Pandemic Preparedness.

Regardless of various prevention and control strategies, malaria continues to be a significant public health problem in Ethiopia. As there are few studies on malaria trend analysis in Northeastern Ethiopia, it hinders the evaluation of ongoing and prioritization of new malaria intervention strategies, particularly during the period of pandemics. Therefore, the present study investigated the trend of malaria prevalence in Northeastern Ethiopia from 2015 to 2020. An institution-based retrospective study was employed to assess the trend of malaria prevalence over a 6-year period (2015-2020) in three districts (Jile tumuga, Aruma fursi, and Dawachefa) of Northeastern Ethiopia. Data were extracted from clinical records of malaria cases by trained medical laboratory technologists. The associations between the prevalence of malaria and independent variables (age group, malaria transmission season, and districts) were assessed using chi-square test. P-values with a cut-off point of 0.05 were used to determine statistically significant associations. In our study area, a total of 212,952 malaria suspected patients were diagnosed over the 6 years. Of these, 33,005 (15.5%) were confirmed malaria cases. The identified Plasmodium species were Plasmodium falciparum and P. vivax, accounting for 66.4% and 33.6%, respectively. These with the age of >15 years old were the most affected (41.9%). The highest numbers of malaria cases (34.6%) were recorded during spring season (September to November). The prevalence of Plasmodium species showed a significant association with age (X2=9.7; p=0.002), districts (X2=13.5; p<0.001), and malaria transmission season (X2=16.5; p<0.001). In our study area, P. falciparum is the dominant species. We noted that malaria remains a public health concern and fluctuates throughout the years. Therefore, national, regional, zonal, and district health bureaus should strengthen the ongoing and devise appropriate prevention and control strategies even during the period of pandemics.

Constraints to and enablers for contextualizing digital health terminology standards in Uganda’s health services: a qualitative case study

ABSTRACTThis study investigated the constraints to and enablers for contextualizing digital health terminology standards using a case study approach of Uganda HIV services. Qualitative methods were used. The study was conducted at both the national and subnational levels of Uganda’s health system. Primary data were collected through key informant interviews, whereas secondary data were collected through document review. Twenty-one interviews were held at subnational levels among officers or their assistants including medical recorders, clinicians, nurses, laboratory technologists, pharmacists and administrators at health facilities and districts. Twelve interviews were held at the national level involving research institutions, academia, health development partners, health implementing partners, Ministry of Health and government agencies. The respondents were sampled purposively. Data were analysed using thematic analysis. The constraints to contextualizing digital health terminology standards were limited digital health terminology expertise, human resources deficits and inadequate information communication technology training. The enablers identified included presence of an installed base of established systems, digital health capacity-building endeavours and technical support at the health facilities. The study recommends that governments should invest in building capacities for digital health particularly training in terminology standards, with the vision of using uniform terminologies in health services across all levels of the health system. Constraints and enablers identified in this study informed our work of requirements generation and design of a framework for contextualizing digital health terminology standards for low- and middle-income countries like Uganda.

Factors Associated with Job Satisfaction in Medical Laboratory Professionals during the COVID-19 Pandemic: An Exploratory Study in Ontario, Canada.

Job satisfaction has been widely studied across several healthcare disciplines and is correlated with important outcomes such as job performance and employee mental health. However, there is limited research on job satisfaction among medical laboratory professionals (MLPs), a key healthcare group that aids in diagnosis, treatment, and patient care. The objective of this study is to examine the demographic and psychosocial factors associated with job satisfaction for MLPs in Ontario, Canada during the COVID-19 pandemic. A survey was administered to medical laboratory technologists (MLTs) and medical laboratory technicians/assistants (MLT/As) in Ontario, Canada. The survey included demographic questions and items from the Copenhagen Psychosocial Questionnaire, third edition. Binary logistic regressions were used to examine the association between job satisfaction and demographic variables and psychosocial work factors. There were 688 MLPs included in the analytic sample (72.12% response rate). Having a higher sense of community at work was correlated with higher job satisfaction in both MLT (OR = 2.22, 95% CI: 1.07-4.77) and MLT/A (OR = 3.85, 95% CI: 1.12-14.06). In addition, having higher stress was correlated with lower job satisfaction in both MLT (OR = 0.32, 95% CI: 0.18-0.57) and MLT/A (OR = 0.26, 95% CI: 0.10-0.66). This study provides preliminary evidence on factors associated with job satisfaction in MLT and MLT/A. The findings can be used to support organizational practices and policies to improve psychosocial work factors.

VARK preference and perception of online versus offline professional development training of medical laboratory technologists.

This study aims to understand the learning preferences and perception of medical laboratory technologists on sudden shift from offline to online training sessions during COVID-19 pandemic. Microsoft form containing twenty-four questions was circulated to the twenty-five laboratory technologists after 1year of online continuous professional development training. VARK questionnaire was circulated to understand the learning style. Provision of recording lectures, significant reduction of performance anxiety, anxiety associated with criticism, and QA sessions emerged as the major positive aspects of a virtual training platform. Analysis of learning preferences revealed that most technologists had a unimodal aural (45%) or kinesthetics (33%) than visual (11%) and reading (11%) learning preference. In bimodal learning preference, AK (44.44%) emerged as the predominant form. Forty percent of the technologists showed trimodal learning pattern with 50% among them showing an ARK pattern while 25% each showing VAK and VRK patterns of learning preferences. Medical laboratory technologists adapted well to the sudden shift from offline to online continuous development programs. However, efficient managerial mechanisms to address the major perceived hurdles and designing a multimodal training module to accommodate the learning preferences of our technologists can ensure enthusiastic participation and effective learning among medical laboratory technologists.

Burnout among Healthcare Workers in a Hospital Calculated based on Fourth Edition of Maslach Burnout Inventory

Background: The prevalence of burnout has been increasing worldwide. Studies were conducted among healthcare workers as they demonstrated high levels of prevalence of burnout especially more than 50% among doctors, pharmacists, and medical laboratory technologists. Moreover, burnout reduces professional efficacy and may negatively impact personal and patient care. Objective: To synthesize research evidence for the prevalence and level of burnout among staffs of various categories according to the scores based on the fourth edition of Maslach Burnout Inventory Manual. Materials and Methods: In the present cross-sectional study, 194 participants from various categories participated from a hospital. Burnout scores were measured using the Maslach Burnout Inventory of General Survey. The general linear model (MANCOVA) was conducted to determine the mean scores of various domains among categories of staffs from the hospital. Results: The prevalence of burnout with at least one component was 82.47%. The scores were 13.12, 14.85, and 26.80 for high emotional exhaustion, cynicism, and professional efficacy, respectively. There were no differences in the levels of emotional exhaustion between participants from various categories. The cynicism scores for the doctors and medical assistants were statistically significantly higher than attendants (p=0.044), partial η²=0.082 indicating a moderate to strong association. There were no significant differences detected in the mean scores between staffs from various categories for professional efficacy domain with p=0.056 and partial η²=0.059. Conclusion: Doctors and medical assistants had shown higher levels of burnout while attendants had demonstrated burnout on one domain compared to other category of staffs. Keywords: Burnout; Healthcare workers; Maslach Burnout Inventory

Virtual interprofessional education to support medical laboratory technologists' participation in interprofessional collaborative practice within integrated healthcare models.

Interprofessional collaborative practice is a key requirement for the successful implementation of integrated healthcare models. Current interprofessional education opportunities seldom include medical laboratory technologists who oversee the production of data that informs the diagnosis, treatment, and monitoring of patients. Errors in the laboratory process mostly occur in the pre-analytical and post-analytical phases, which both involve the need for collaboration between medical laboratory technologists and other healthcare providers. In this article, we introduce and describe an innovative work-integrated virtual learning experience that provides technologists with the opportunity to fully participate in interprofessional education.

Examining the Mental Health, Wellbeing, Work Participation and Engagement of Medical Laboratory Professionals in Ontario, Canada: An Exploratory Study.

ObjectivesThe overall objective of this proposed project is to examine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health, functioning and wellbeing of medical laboratory technologists (MLT) and medical laboratory technicians/assistants (MLT/A) in Ontario, Canada.MethodsA cross-sectional study included a self-reported questionnaire for MLT and MLT/A in Ontario. The questionnaire included questions about demographics and occupational characteristics. Questions about mental health, functioning, well-being and psychosocial work environments were also included using validated questionnaires.ResultsThere were 551 MLT and 401 MLT/A in the analytic sample. Most of the respondents were women. The mean age and standard deviation of the overall sample were 42.0 ± 11.8. MLT demonstrated higher quantitative demands, possibilities for development, and organizational justice compared to MLT/A. The scores of work pace, emotional demands, role conflicts, job insecurity, insecurity over working conditions and negative acts were higher for MLT/A than MLT. The WHODAS 2.0 scores of the respondents were 20.80 ± 6.68, higher than approximately 92% average people. For both groups, most respondents scored the COPSOQ-III domains as worse since COVID-19.ConclusionThe study provides preliminary evidence regarding the workplace mental health outcomes of medical laboratory professionals in Ontario, Canada. The findings suggest that MLT and MLT/A experience psychosocial work conditions that impact mental health, functioning and disability. Accordingly, additional research is necessary to understand the experiences of medical laboratory professionals.

Pre-graduate teaching of human parasitology for medical laboratory technologist programs in Japan

Parasitic diseases continue to exist in many developing countries. In most cases, medical laboratory technologists (MLTs) detect parasitosis, which is then diagnosed and treated by medical doctors. However, parasitological education in medical schools has been declining, particularly in developed countries, leading to a decline in diagnostic ability. Therefore, the role of MLTs has become more critical. However, the current status of parasitology education in MLTs has not been investigated. In this study, a questionnaire survey of 93 schools and the students that are members of the Japanese association of medical technology and offer MLTs training programs was conducted. The educators were asked about the time and content of lectures and practical training, and the students were asked about their understanding of parasitology and the areas they found difficult. A series of χ2 distribution analyses were employed to analyze the data, and the Benjamini–Hochberg method was subsequently used to correct the p-values. This study included 62 out of 93 schools and 1043 students as participants. The results revealed a significant decrease in lecture hours in parasitology compared to 1994, and the trend that may continue in the future. In addition, after attending the lectures, students tended to disregard parasitology as a necessary subject. Pre-study interest was found to have an impact on post-study comprehension. This study is the first to report on the current status of parasitology education in MLTs parasitology training programs in parasite-free countries and can serve as a model for similar studies in other regions in the future.

Adapting the Gamified Educational Networking (GEN) Learning Management System to Deliver a Virtual Simulation Training Module to Determine the Enhancement of Learning and Performance Outcomes.

Microtomy is a medical laboratory sciences procedure that medical laboratory technologists (MLTs) use to cut tissues for microscopic examination. Due to safety concerns and the potential to destroy tissue samples, learners must perform the procedure correctly. In order to allow for safe and controlled learning, this procedure should be conducted in a simulated setting before attempting with human tissues.The objective of this study is to describe the development and user-based evaluation of a virtual simulation training module. A research group developed the virtual simulation training module's content and design, and a local MLT expert provided the content. Nine students enrolled in a university-based medical laboratory sciences program provided feedback about the module. The results demonstrated that the virtual simulation training module was an effective and user-friendly learning tool for the medical laboratory sciences program. Although more validity and efficacy testing are required in the future, the students indicated a potential to use this module to prepare future students for hands-on exercise in a simulation laboratory setting.