Histonetters, I see this subject tends to illicit strong sentiments from professionals who are impacted or have an impact on HT/HTL's (sort of everyone on the net)?.
I am still in school, but I want to fully understand how training, certification, and registration work for HT/HTL’s. I realize that ASCP certification is voluntary, and that some States require some sort of license or certification, but I’ve never heard of a “Registry” for HT/HTL’s. -The way I understand through what I’ve been taught at school is that Histology is the study of tissue, And that... -To study tissue there is another science that prepares specimens so they can be studied. And that... -There is a final sequence “Quality Control” that verifies the science that prpares specimens is properly done so the tissue can be studied. And that… In order for this all to happen successfully and consistently, the HT/HTL's make sure that during the whole preparation process, safety is observed, proper adherence to federal and state regulations maintained, plus train other technicians to do the same, and much more. If I understood it all correctly I can’t help but wonder: If HT/HTL's do all of this crucial preparation work to make sure specimens are acceptable for precise microscopic identification of cells, tissue type, diagnosis of disease, and other needs: "Why wouldn't we want to have some method that can gage a set of basic skills to indicate a level of competency that HT/HTL's should initially have, in order to enter the field of work that can effect so many people either directly or indirectly?" And also... "Wouldn’t having NAACLS accredited training and ASCP Certifications serve to gage those basic skills?" And also… "Would gaging basic skills have a positive impact on the quality of patient care and the efficiency of the HT/HTL’s impact on labs?” I'm not sure but...this fall… when I complete my NAACLS accredited degree program, and voluntarily take the ASCP HTL certification exam, my future employer will be able to expect a certain level of competency that I hope to have established through training and certification. Rick T. _______________________________________________ Histonet mailing list Histonet@lists.utsouthwestern.edu http://lists.utsouthwestern.edu/mailman/listinfo/histonet