Understanding Phlebotomy Certification

A phlebotomy certification is the way the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) assures that everyone taking blood follows strict guidelines. Other certification agencies work hand in hand with CLSI to monitor and approve phlebotomists; in fact, there are ten different agencies approved to issue phlebotomy certifications. You can learn even more about certification at the site mentioned in the link below.

Where Certification is Required

There are only two states in the U.S. that require phlebotomists to be certified at this time, California and Louisiana, but this will probably change over time. There are currently technicians who regularly take blood but do not have a certification in the area of phlebotomy, and although this does not make them bad at what they do, it does raise a flag that their methods might not be the same as those who have passed an accredited test.

Jobs are harder to find during the recessionary period, and health care positions are becoming much more competitive. Even if the law does not require a phlebotomy certification, hospitals, clinics, and laboratories are looking for the best educated personnel they can get. It is becoming increasingly rare for a hospital to hire anyone to take blood that doesn’t have the required credentials and it certainly gives anyone posessing them an edge when competing at an interview.

Legal Liability

From a legal standpoint, it makes perfect sense for a hospital to hire only technicians who hold a phlebotomy certification. A lawsuit might occur in which the hospital could be found guilty of negligence for hiring someone not legally considered a professional. History has shown that most mistakes in clinical testing occur at the pre-analytical phase, which means before the sample(s) reach the lab.

Requirements to Take the Test

Anyone can take the certification test as long as he or she has a high school diploma or a GED, has logged at least 100 clinical hours in venipunctures, has successfully performed 100 blood withdrawals, and has performed dermal punctures 10 or more times without any problems. The high school diploma is all that is required to take a course in phlebotomy.

Many who apply for phlebotomy certification have never attended phlebotomy training, but have received their experience in the field. As fewer people get hired to take blood without school training or certification, the numbers who apply without institutional training will decrease. Anyone who applies to take the test  should study beforehand, even if he or she has a great deal of experience in doing the work.

The certifying organization that is required to supervise the test can provide materials pertaining to what is included on the test, and often will supply pre-tests that will help determine how much, if anything, a person needs to learn before going for the exam. This is especially helpful for the person who has never attended class for phlebotomy.

Differing Requirements to Stay Certified

Not all certification bodies view certification in the area of phlebotomy the same way. Some require re-certification through examination and/or continuing education. This can be a requirement to keep certification. It doesn’t matter which organization a person answers to for their certification; questions will be similar because the sanctioning bodies all follow the same standards.

Certification Testing

If the student is well educated in the fundamentals of phlebotomy through a training course that teaches theory and practical knowledge, it should not be difficult to pass the examination for phlebotomy certification. More information can be found here.

The better tests for phlebotomy are those that require a computer because of the development of software programs that can direct succeeding test questions to follow a certain path based on the answers to preceding questions. Not all exams that cater for certification in the field of phlebotomy are computerized though, and many are administered on paper.

The advantage that comes with certification for a better job position is well worth taking a short phlebotomy class and passing an examination. Phlebotomists often have flexible working hours, and they are compensated well for their work.

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