2024-2025 Undergraduate Catalog 
    
    Nov 21, 2024  
2024-2025 Undergraduate Catalog

Allied Health Education - Clinical Laboratory Assistant Certificate


Program Description The Clinical Laboratory Assistant Certificate program is designed to prepare students for entry level positions in the clinical laboratory. These entry level positions include employment in medical centers, outpatient laboratories, research facilities, and doctor offices. Students are trained in all aspects of the clinical laboratory including, the skill of phlebotomy, waived testing, specimen processing, data entry, laboratory safety, result retrieval, quality control, laboratory billing, basic microbiology, and transfusion support services. This certificate requires successful completion of a minimum of 40 credits as outlined.

Advising Note This program requirement sheet is not a substitute for meeting with an academic advisor. Meeting the requirements to graduate with an Edmonds College certificate or degree is ultimately the responsibility of the student.

Program Requirements (26 credits)


*See Program Requirements Notes

OUTCOMES:

  1. Function as a member of the health care team.
  2. Define the role of the clinical assistant in the health care delivery system.
  3. Use appropriate medical language to communicate with co-workers and ancillary staff.
  4. Follow standard operating procedures to collect specimens.
  5. Follow established quality control protocols.
  6. Use information systems necessary to clinical lab assistant job functions.
  7. Perform duties in compliance with CLSI standards (Clinical Laboratory Science Institute), with the knowledge to pass the ASCP (American Society of Clinical Pathologists) national exam, and with consideration of OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) mandates.
  8. ​Use critical thinking and problem solving appropriately in the role of a clinical lab assistant.

Program Notes


The program code for this certificate is CMLCLC20. For financial aid, advising, and other reasons, students should work with their advisor to ensure that this code is properly recorded on their academic record. 

*Program Requirements Notes

  • Upon completion of AHE 141 and AHE 143, students within this program will be eligible for ASCP certification and licensing as a Medical Assistant Phlebotomist (WA State). The knowledge, skills, and abilities in this program were designed based on the standards defined by NAACLS, ASCP, and CLSI.
  • Students with limited computer skills are encouraged to consider taking BSTEC 129 - PC Basics.
  • Participation in externship classes requires documentation of current vaccinations, TB status, and criminal background status prior to registering for those classes. Students are advised that clinical placement may be denied if vaccination records and CPR are not current or if there is a criminal history that the facility considers unacceptable.
  • All students are required to set up an account with CastleBranch (www.castlebranch.com, package code “EE78”) to store vaccination documentation and complete a criminal background check for a fee.
  • Students may be placed in a Clinical Placements Northwest (CPNW) consortium site, which requires an extra fee.
  • Students may be required to complete additional facility-specific onboarding documents. Failure to do so may result in denial of clinical placement.
  • Students with current American Heart Association (AHA) Basic Life Support (BLS) certification, valid through the end of the program, may substitute one credit of additional elective in place of AHE 115; see faculty advisor.

**Program Electives Notes

  • Some electives meet prerequisite requirements for Registered Nursing programs and may have prerequisite requirements of their own.

The department advisors for this program are:
Cathy Dominguez | cathy.dominguez@edmonds.edu | 425.640.1242
Elizabeth Patterson | elizabeth.patterson@edmonds.edu | 425.640.1061

The faculty advisors for this program are:
Erika Ferreri | erika.ferreri@edmonds.edu | 425.640.1924
Brent Leithauser | brent.leithauser@edmonds.edu | 425.640.1369
Terri Glazewski | terri.glazewski@edmonds.edu | 425.640.1691

Department website: Allied Health Education | edmonds.edu/ahe

Certificate General Information


Credit/Grade Requirements A minimum of 30 credits or one-third of the required college-level (100-level or above) credits, whichever is less, must be earned at Edmonds College. Students are required to maintain a minimum cumulative grade point average of 2.0 in all college-level courses.

Program of Study Outcomes Student achievement is assessed in the general and program specific outcomes via the courses and course objectives that align with those outcomes. More information about program outcomes and course objectives can be found on the Using Program Requirement Sheets  page.

Students Are Advised To:

  • Plan their schedule several quarters in advance in order to accommodate courses that are offered only once or twice a year;
  • Review the college catalog for required course prerequisites and include these in schedule planning; and
  • Communicate with an academic advisor and/or a faculty advisor.

Graduation Application A completed Graduation Application form must be submitted online by the 10th day of the quarter in which the student expects to graduate. Note: Applications for summer quarter are due by the 8th day of the quarter.

Common Course Numbering Please refer to www.edmonds.edu/ccn for more information.

College Resources

Internal Coding


PLAN/STACK - CMLCLC20
TC - 40
CIP - 510802
Last revised - 2024/02/02